Wandering Souls
by Kyrosai
Summary: Rodrigo gets the Apple sooner than the Assassins expected, and it's up to Ezio to take it from him. The catch? There's a little surprise waiting inside the relic for him should he succeed. Altair/Ezio/Leonardo threesome. Warnings and full summary inside.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer**: The Assassin's Creed series and its characters belong to Ubisoft/Ubisoft Montreal

**Summary**: Rodrigo gets the Apple sooner than the Assassins expected, and it's up to Ezio to take it from him. The catch? Venezia has toppled into Templar reign, and yet it is the only place where Ezio has a chance to get the Apple. The other catch? There's a little surprise waiting inside it for him should he succeed.... An Altair/Ezio/Leonardo requested fanfic.

**Warnings**: some spoilers, language, maleXmaleXmale love, some molesting (NOT a rape fic, just a bit of noncon touching in the later chapters)

**Author's Note**: First of all, updates will (hopefully) be on every other day. Also, this is only the first fic. I intend to make a sequel after it. The sequel is going to focus more on the actual relationship between Altair/Ezio/Leonardo, whereas this first one is mostly introducing the setting and characters (what my view of them is, anyway) while also inching its way _into_ the relationship. In other words, if you came here just for the sex, you will unfortunately be waiting a while – for the sequel, to be precise.

As for my writing, I am aware that at times my mind can get a little… weird and disorganized. I hope that I have been able to state everything clearly, but I apologize if I did not. This fic is, in a way, a stepping stone to further advance my writing skills. I'm positive I'm not a "pro" fanfic writer yet, but I intend to learn enough to at least come close ;P. As such, critiques are always welcomed and much appreciated! ^^

Also, I apologize in advance for any discrepancies. I tried my best to get a good grasp of it all, but I wouldn't be surprised if I missed something .

Translations for the Italian are at the bottom of each chapter. I used an online translator for most of them, so they may not be completely reliable, however .….

* * *

_The first time I dived into the Piece of Eden, I don't remember what I saw, just what I felt. Calm, bliss, peaceful oblivion, and even more potently, the _power_. It is no wonder so many are after it. It could drive a person to madness in their obsession for that feeling. I like to think I am above such things, and perhaps to an extent I am. Although I can feel myself being drawn back to the Apple, I do not feel the overpowering need to use the it, nor do I feel the need to lose myself in it. And yet, I can't destroy the thing. It is a blight on Man's existence, but it is a beautiful one._

_After that first time, the compulsion to dive back into it almost frightened me. I don't enjoy admitting that, but that is what I felt. Some may be willing to hide their fears, especially from themselves, but though I too feel such compulsion at times, I try to overcome it. I have heard it said that it is a sign of wisdom to be true to oneself in the way that I try to be, but I prefer to think of it as my growing old._

_Of course, I was not always this way. I was rash once, and arrogant to the point of stupidity. The change was so gradual, I hardly noticed a difference. I simply… saw the world in a different way. So it almost passed my attention that I was a little more open and curious. I was even a little more considerate of others. I easily allowed myself to think that this change came about because I had uncovered the treacherous actions of my former Master and had finally put those troubles to rest. I allowed myself to think that his betrayal had opened my eyes to the rest of the world beyond myself. But there was another thing working its witchcraft on me during that time. Or rather, there was another _person_ who had inadvertently been changing me._

_Malik is my greatest ally here in Masyaf, and more than that, he is my greatest friend. Though I had been the cause of his brother's death and the loss of his arm, he now treats me more kindly than I could have ever hoped for. I don't know how long I had been feeling the things I feel, but I suddenly realized one day that I was growing attracted to him. The way he moved, the way his passion was always evident in his voice, the way he looked at me with hard, knowing eyes that spoke of an understanding between us. My heart would beat rapidly when he came near. My legs would grow weak when he glanced in my direction. How I longed to hold him, to have him with me always._

_In a way, he also changed me. Without his hatred from before to fuel the guilt that I had held in my heart for his loss, I never would have been so compelled to right the wrongs that not only I had committed, but the ones my Master had as well. Malik had given me _meaning_, and with that meaning, I had fought the Master, and I had prevailed._

_It is now that I wonder if perhaps I am admitting this forbidden attraction to another male too easily. I find myself surprisingly accepting this part of me, no matter how… strange that part is. Perhaps I am not only getting old, but am also becoming a philosopher._

_I hear myself chuckle as I think of what Malik would have to say to that. Me? A philosopher? He would surely have a good laugh._

… _Perhaps I will tell him, then. I enjoy hearing his laugh…._

* * *

At first, all Ezio could feel was the wind tearing across his face. A moment later, he was able to see clearly as long as his eyes remained mostly shut; his lashes seemed to be doing a fair enough job of keeping the wind at bay. The city stretched out below him, and he was entranced by its beauty. He would never admit it, but he was easily entranced by beauty – mainly that of a woman's, but there were other things that could serve to easily distract him. A view of Venezia from the height that he was at was one of those things. Lights sparkled through the windows, people walked the streets in their colorful clothing despite the late hour, and the structures rose up in a majestic semblance of grandeur that any Doge should be proud of. Ezio wanted nothing more than to bask in the breathtaking sight that few people would ever be granted, except that those damned archers refused to give him a moment's rest.

Ezio turned Leonardo's flying machine to dodge the arrows, twisting his body gracefully to move with the machine. Another volley was loosed after him, and he dipped the tip of the machine down slightly to soar under them, spotting the next fire while he did so. As he headed towards it, he was struck by how calm it all felt. Even with arrows trying to pin him down and guards shouting, "_Il Diavolo_!" nearly every time they spotted him, it was still so… peaceful. Maybe it was the wind pushing across his face and rushing down his body. Maybe it was the view of the city. Maybe it was some quirk in the machine that Leonardo had put there to make the ride as easy for him as possible (he wouldn't put it past the man. Leonardo was a wonder sometimes…. Most times).

Ezio continued to traverse the skies as expertly as any assassin like him ought to be able to. Sure, he was feeling a little proud at how well he was doing, but considering how he had never really done anything like _fly_ before, he felt his pride was justified. The ride, however, was over quickly, and Ezio let the machine go. He rolled as he hit the roof of the Palazzo, then immediately set off towards his destination, not bothering to watch the machine valiantly attempt to stay in the air before crashing into a bed of water in the distance. He regretfully didn't have time to be gentle with it. There was a Doge that needed to be saved and a man that needed to be assassinated.

Carlo Grimaldi. The man was attempting to assassinate the Doge Mocenigo, and Ezio had to stop him. Ezio reveled for a moment in the irony of the situation. An assassin was trying to stop another assassin from assassinating someone, and then he had to assassinate said assassin. Ezio figured he would have a good laugh about that later, but for now he needed to get to his target.

Ezio glanced inside the room just as the Doge was about to take a sip of some wine (poisoned wine, Ezio surmised). Ezio made a show of jumping into the room without preamble. After all, what better way to grab a person's attention than to leap valiantly and unannounced into their private quarters? The cup was just barely pressed to the Doge's lips when Ezio shouted, "Stop! Signore, don't drink that!"

Carlo rose from the table. In a low voice, he said, "You are too late. The Doge is dead."

"What?" The Doge exclaimed in surprise. "Carlo?"

"Apologies, Signore, but you should have listened to me when you had the chance." The Doge dropped the cup, grasping at his throat. Carlo inched toward the exit. "Seems you have failed, Assassin."

Ezio looked at the Doge apologetically. "Forgive me, Signore. I tried." There was nothing else he could say.

The Doge just looked at him, confused. "Why? What was it… all for?"

Ezio could only watch in horror as the Doge tried to speak further, but coughed up blood instead. A shout from outside alerted him that his target was on the move. With one last glance at the Doge whom he had failed to save, he set off after Carlo. The man was running down the hall, screaming, "_Assassino_! _Assassino_! He's killed the Doge! The Doge is dead!" The guards hesitated, surprised, before jumping into action. They tried to surround him in the courtyard, but Ezio would have none of it. His eyes cold and determined, he shoved past them, flying at Carlo and catching the man in the throat with his hidden blade.

As usual, he learned little to nothing from his victim. Ezio rose after giving the proper respects and, dodging numerous enemy blades, quickly made his way out of the Palazzo as the alarms started sounding. When he was far enough away, he rested a moment, thinking of what his next move was going to be, and he decided that the first order of business was for him to appreciate the continued irony of the situation he currently found himself in. Not only had he failed as an assassin to stop an assassin from completing an assassination, but he had also been blamed for an assassination that he didn't commit. The world was looking bright and beautiful tonight. Notice the sarcasm.

Once past the self-pity that came from failing a mission – a very important mission – he began to seriously plan his next move. First off, he wasn't about to show his face anytime soon. Being charged with killing the Doge was a serious offense, and Ezio was sure that the entire city would be looking for him for a good long while. He sighed and turned to look at the moon, remember that not an hour ago he was closer to it than any other person in this city had ever been. He remembered the sights, the calm and peace. It had been so beautiful, and now he had to leave. That seemed the only option left to him. He would leave for a while, until the heat died down enough for him to return.

It didn't take him long to get past the city boundaries, and Ezio had to force himself to not look back.

* * *

The air was bitingly cold in Monteriggioni that day. A small breeze drifted around the city as the common people strolled about the streets on their daily business. The sun was up high, but it provided little warmth.

By the foot of a large villa situated on the highest point in the city, a man paced behind the lord of the estate, his hood concealing his features save the hard set lips that scowled in the chilly air.

"We have a problem, Mario." La Volpe cut straight to business. He never enjoyed remaining in one place too long. The sooner he was gone, the better he would feel.

"And what would that problem be, La Topo?" Mario asked curtly. Grunting was heard from the training pit as two of Mario's mercenaries practiced unarmed combat. Mario watched the two with a trained eye, his arms crossed and back held straight.

"My name is La Volpe, Mario. Not La Topo, _La Volpe_." It was obvious to anyone present that there was little love lost between the two, though no one could say why that was so, including Mario and La Volpe themselves.

Mario waved him off. "Whatever! Just get on with it, I have work to do."

La Volpe's scowl deepened, but he continued. "Rodrigo is working faster than I expected. Reports from Roma say he that has already found the location of the Apple."

Mario whirled on him. "What?! How? How could he have deciphered the Codex pages when he doesn't even _have_ them?"

La Volpe stopped pacing to sneer at him. "Apparently he doesn't _need_ the Codex pages." The notorious thief took a deep breath and placed his thumb and forefinger between his eyes as if fending off a bad headache. "My apologies, Mario. The stress of the situation has made me short of temper."

"As usual, you mean?"

La Volpe scowled again. "Like _you_ should talk, _vecchio_!" He turned and began pacing again. "It is only a matter of time before Rodrigo gets his hands on it. There is no more point in collecting the Codex pages now. We have no Assassins close enough to Rodrigo, so there's no hope of us getting the Apple before he does either. Ah, _questo è brutto_!"

Mario had turned back to his men, troubled by the news. "Have you told any of the others yet?"

La Volpe shook his head. "You were closest, so I have told only you. However, it is in your hands now to tell the other Bureaus in Italia. I have to-"

Mario turned to stare angrily at the thief. "_My_ hands? It is _your_ job to be the messenger boy, La Topo! What, pray tell, are you going to be doing that's more important?!"

La Volpe cleared his throat patiently. "As I was saying before you interrupted me," Mario looked irritable enough to do so again, so La Volpe continued quickly. "I was going to go find Ezio."

Mario blinked. "My _nipote_ is missing?"

La Volpe stopped pacing and looked at him thoughtfully. As one who had grown up alone, the concept of 'family' was alien to the thief. The closest he had ever come to such a thing was the Assassins, but even then not many of them had much time to bond with each other. And being the one in charge of the correspondence between the Assassin Bureaus, he had less time than others to bond with those who followed the Creed. "Yes, Mario. Ezio has gone missing. For good reason, though. There's been a lot happening in Venezia lately. Apparently the old Doge was assassinated and the entire city thinks it was Ezio who killed him."

"Ezio?! My _nipote_? Why would he-"

"He didn't _actually_ kill the man, Mario," La Volpe explained, exasperated. "It was someone else. I suspect Carlo Grimaldi since Ezio was also accused of assassinating him directly afterward, and I know that man to be a Templar. But it gets worse."

"Of course." Mario threw up his hands in defeat.

La Volpe continued, nonplussed. "The new Doge they set up is one Marco Barbarigo, _also_ a Templar."

"_Vaffanculo_!" Mario spat.

La Volpe nodded agreement. "So Ezio made a wise decision for once in his life and ran like the hounds of Hell were on his heels. Which I imagine they were," he added as an afterthought. "However, I'm sure he got away in one piece, more or less. It's just a matter of my finding him now." Mario nodded, relaxing a little. La Volpe thought a moment before continuing. "Also, there have been reports from Antonio stating in very clear terms that he has his hands full with the problems in Venezia thanks to the new Doge. Theodora is fairing little better. I have heard nothing from Bartolomeo."

"And your point, La Topo? It's not like I can just send men out there to help any of them. I have my own problems to deal with!"

"I understand that, Mario," The thief said patiently, pointedly ignoring the name Mario seemed to enjoy calling him. He started pacing once more, a small, placating smile on his lips. La Volpe was in his element now; he knew how to play this game. Mario watched him warily, noting the difference in his stride and the casual air of confidence. "You are a busy man – you have told me so on several occasions. I merely thought you might wish to know about the current situation in Venezia. You know, the place that is doing whatever it can to have your nephew's head on a pike adorning the outer wall of the Doge's Palazzo? I mean, it's not like Antonio and Theodora are going to be in any position to help him since they are clearly too busy themselves, are as always Bartolomeo has his own agenda. Not to mention that once Rodrigo returns with the Apple, they will be unable to do much against him since it seems that the entire city is now under Templar control." La Volpe shook his head and waved the problem off as if it was nothing. "But again, this is just something that I thought you may wish to know about. Of course, you have absolutely _no_ obligation as a fellow Assassin of the Creed to help them. Nor do you have any obligation to your nephew to see him safe once and for all in one of the few places he could have ever been safe in this world. No obligation at all." La Volpe smiled innocently at him.

Mario grimaced. Damn the man to Hell. He was far too persuasive for his own good sometimes. Mario wasn't likely to cave in so quickly, though. He had his honor to think about. "I will take their plight into consideration."

La Volpe smiled brightly and clapped his hands together. "Wonderful! And I'm sure you will also send word about the situation with Rodrigo to the other Assassins in Italia, _si_?"

"_Si_, I'll send word! Now off with you, _cretino_! I have men to train!" He turned his back on the fox, dismissing the man.

La Volpe let out one last chuckle before removing himself silently from the premise. Now, to find his horse….

* * *

**Italian-English translations**:

_Il Diavolo_ = The Devil

_Assassino_ = Assassin

La Topo = The Mouse

La Volpe = The Fox

_vecchio_ = old man

_questo è brutto _= this is awful (I wanted to try, "This is a mess," but it didn't sound as fun as this one did .…)

_nipote_ = nephew

_Vaffanculo_ = Fuck

_si = _yes

_cretino_ = cretin


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer**: The Assassin's Creed series and its characters belong to Ubisoft/Ubisoft Montreal

**AN**: I probably should've mentioned in the last chapter that there is a little one-sided Altair/Malik as well in this fic. Whoops.

Just to let you all know, what I write later on in this chapter about the Assassin ideals versus the Templar ideals are all just what I _think_ they want and are trying to fight for. It is NOT me trying to instill my own ideals and values on my readers. That said, enjoy! ^^

* * *

_Malik. I had thought it was attraction. Something simple. Something I could put aside and ignore. When has my life ever been so easy?_

_Since the death of our Master, the Templars have been quiet. Not many assassinations needed. But because of the trouble caused by our Master, there has been a lot of work to be done in Masyaf. And for some strange reason, Malik felt it necessary to promote me to the Master's position. I almost laughed at him._

_I suppose that it _was_ necessary, though. There weren't many Assassins left (I had been forced to strike several of them down myself before I could deal with the Master). We needed to find and train more, as well as make some… amends around the city. I guess not many of the citizens liked being mind-controlled. In the end, I somehow knew what needed to be done in order to salvage what was left of the Order. With Malik's help, of course._

_Malik and I spent a lot of time together during those days. I sent another Assassin to take over his own position as Rafiq in Jerusalem until we could work out how to build up the Order again. It was during that time that I found myself growing attracted to him. And it was during that time that I started to find him… irresistible._

_I held myself back, of course, though it took all of my self-discipline. There was nothing in his manner that caused me to think he considered me in the same way that I considered him. It was difficult, but I prevailed._

_I developed a... thing for him yelling at me. He always looked so adorable when he was angry or frustrated. I teased him constantly, provoked him to the point where he threatened to throw a knife at me. But he always calmed down by the next day, and then I'd have to start over again. Perhaps he enjoyed the trouble I gave him, but I know he did not enjoy it as much as I._

_We both agreed that the Piece of Eden was a dangerous thing, but since neither of us could destroy it, we decided to hide it. That was the most important task that we needed to accomplish upon rising to the status of Master. At first, we kept it in Masyaf. We hid it behind bars and steel doors, then we placed traps about the room and the hallway outside it. Due to the amount of construction this endeavor took, it was well known to anyone in Masyaf that something secret and precious was being kept in the cold, dark room. And if it was obvious to anyone in Masyaf, then it was equally obvious to any Templars, not only that something precious was there, but what that precious thing was. Only Malik and I knew the way to get to the room, but it was a constant worry to us that someone, be he Templar or not, would find a way to get the Apple._

_Our troubles hardly ended there, however. One day, Malik admitted to having an obsession with the Apple. He found it more difficult to resist its call as time went on. To protect him, I knew I needed to hide it myself elsewhere. Somewhere where he would not be able to touch it. Without telling him, I took it. I took it, and I kept it. I placed it in a box, and then in a bag that I carried around with me always. I seemed to have a certain resistance to its pull, and who could it be safer with than one as skilled as I with the blade? So it struck me as the right thing to do. If anyone asked why I carried the bag, I told them that it held most of the papers that I needed to go through as Master, and they accepted this reason, including Malik, for there was a lot of work to be done at that time. Not only did my actions protect Malik, but they also ensured that the Templars, though they may one day break into the vault, would not get the Apple. In fact, _no one _would know where it was. No one but I. _

* * *

La Volpe found him en route to Roma. When the thief had caught up to him, he had been able to convince Ezio to follow him back to Monteriggioni, and, consequentially, back towards the hangman's noose should any of the authorities catch sight of him.

During the time they spent together, Ezio had hoped to learn something from the man. There were many secrets the thief kept; that much became obvious to Ezio early on. But he refused to speak of them, no matter how Ezio tried to persuade him. As a matter of fact, La Volpe hardly said a word at all, preferring to keep to himself. Ezio went so far as to think that the thief was being moody, judging by the way La Volpe would snap at him when he forgot a simple thing, or glare at him when he asked too many questions. This was a little different from what Ezio had first seen when he met the man in Firenze. La Volpe was a man of many faces, it seemed.

They arrived in Monteriggioni not long after the sun had set. They left their mounts outside the city walls and continued on foot. Ezio kept his face hidden behind his cowl as he followed the silent thief. There were wanted posters out even this far, and the price was high. Very high. It was no small thing to be charged with the Doge's murder. Ezio was almost proud of the price on his head until he remembered that he hadn't actually been the one to kill the Doge. That served to put him in a sour mood for the rest of the evening.

One thing that did nothing to help that mood was trying to keep up with La Volpe. Following the thief was proving more difficult than it really should have been. It was almost a second habit for La Volpe to blend so well with his surroundings that the shadows nearly consumed him, and he would disappear for a few moments. Ezio nearly lost sight of him on several occasions despite La Volpe being just a few feet in front of him. It was really quite annoying. Perhaps it was a skill all thieves had. Ezio made a note to himself to ask Antonio about it the next time he had a chance. Maybe someday, he might even ask La Volpe to teach him how to blend in so well. Not that Ezio thought the man would teach him; it was obvious that La Volpe wasn't exactly the sociable type.

The villa rose up in the distance, a dark structure against the red evening sky. If Ezio didn't already think of it as a second home, he might've been intimidated.

Surprisingly, La Volpe used the front door. He knocked and waited patiently. For some reason Ezio had expected him to go leaping through an open window as per his usual, sneaky ways. Maybe Ezio spent too much time with Rosa. As a thief, she never used the front door. It was always the window. Usually the locked one. Ezio had the impression she was trying to impress him, and it had certainly worked well enough at the time, as Ezio recalled with a small smile.

The door opened, and the two were shown to Mario's office. Mario was standing by his desk, rifling through some papers before he looked up to nod a greeting to the two. He gave Ezio a small but warm smile. "Ezio. It is good to see you well!" He wasn't as jovial as usual.

"Hello, uncle. Is there something wrong?"

Mario started to shake his head, a no just barely making it past his lips before La Volpe interrupted him. "_Si_, Ezio. There are quite a lot of problems for us at the moment. But unfortunately we will need to wait for the others before we go over them all."

"Others?"

Mario broke in, sputtering in anger, "La Topo, what are you doing? He doesn't need to know such things! At least not yet."

"Actually, Mario, he does. I have a feeling that this is going to become much bigger than any of us as we are now. We will need all the help we can get, and Ezio is more than able to provide such assistance."

Mario scowled but did not argue further. "I assume, then, you know what you are doing?"

La Volpe flashed him a grin. "_Certo_, Mario!"

Ezio looked back and forth between them and realized he had more than a few questions. "Am I missing something here, uncle? How is it you two know each other, and what are these problems you are talking about? And what do you need me for?"

It was La Volpe who took it upon himself to answer. "You will know soon enough, but first I must get the others. This concerns the entire Order here in Italia. We will discuss it then."

Before Ezio could question him further, La Volpe was gone. Mario shook his head again and sighed. He turned back to his nephew. "Well, I assume he will be returning by tomorrow sometime, and the others with him. For now, perhaps you should get some sleep, _nipote_."

"But I have questions-"

"Sleep first, _nipote_. We will talk about them later." He turned back to the papers on his desk, and Ezio took that as a dismissal. Ezio excused himself and made his way out of the room, troubled and yearning for some answers. But he decided he could wait at least until tomorrow. He first went to check up on his mother and sister, and they were the same as he had remembered them. With nothing left to do, Ezio took himself to bed.

* * *

He was woken up sometime before midday and, once he was ready, he was shown again to Mario's office. Mario himself sat behind a large desk with a solemn expression on his face. Ezio was expecting him to be there, but the others in the room were another story entirely. Antonio, Paola, and a fourth man Ezio didn't recognize was also there. Antonio and Paola nodded shortly to Ezio in greeting, but said nothing. Ezio returned their nods, then sized up the fourth person. He was tall, thin, and just a little paler than the average Italian. He didn't really seem like anything special to Ezio, but his sharp eyes belied an intelligence that was at odds with his appearance. Ezio wasn't really sure what to make of him yet.

It was this man that spoke first. "Good. We are all here who is supposed to be here, with a few minor exceptions."

Ezio caught how Antonio's eyes flashed dangerously at this last statement, but the man remained silent.

It was about then that Ezio realized he didn't see La Volpe. He opened his mouth to question the thief's absence, but stopped short when he noticed the scoundrel smirking at him in the corner. As it was with the night before, the shadows hid the thief to the point where he was nearly invisible. And judging by that smirk, the thief had known that Ezio was about to ask after him. _Bastardo_.

"Except for one of us present, we all know why we are here. Unless La Volpe took it upon himself to explain the situation to him?" The man looked inquiringly at the thief in the corner.

La Volpe bowed his head slightly. "I thought I'd leave it to you, Niccolo. You have _such_ a way with words." Judging by La Volpe's obvious sarcasm and Antonio's earlier expression, it seemed this Niccolo character wasn't much liked here.

"Enough, La Volpe. And how many times have I told you to call me Messer Machiavelli?"

"Several." La Volpe told at him blandly, not seeming to care in the least.

Niccolo glared at him a moment before shaking his head. "So, who would like the honor of explaining things to him?" Niccolo gestured toward Ezio.

Antonio spoke up. "You have a better grasp of things. Perhaps you should start."

Ezio decided it was his turn to address something that was beginning to irritate him. "And you can start by talking _to_ me rather than _over_ me, _Messer Machiavelli_."

Niccolo looked at him curiously a moment, almost like an adult would look at a child that was in over its head. It was annoying. "Very well, Ezio. There is a problem that has been brought to our attention just recently." He raised a hand as Ezio tried to speak. "And no, it has nothing to do with the assassination of the old Doge."

Antonio interrupted. "Although that _is_ a problem that we need to address."

Niccolo waved him off. "Later. For now we must explain the situation with Rodrigo."

"Are you telling me that the new Doge and the troubles he is causing us in Venezia are not as important? Should I tell you of the consequences we will face should we lose the city?" Antonio's voice held a hint of rising anger that he was working hard to hold back. Paola placed a hand gently on his arm, but it did not seem to calm him.

Niccolo spared him a glance. "I am saying we shall speak of it later." He turned back to Ezio, disregarding Antonio's glare. "You see, Ezio, there is a war going on. Not many know about it. Both parties involved have been trying for generations to keep it a secret from the rest of the world. The people you see here today, including some others, you have all met before. We have all been trying to train you ever since you first started out following in your father's footsteps. We are Assassins, and our enemy is of the highest order known as the Templars."

Ezio's eyes widened. Did he truly hear that right? Antonio, Paola, La Volpe, and Mario were all Assassins? It seemed strange to think of them in that light. "Assassins?"

"_Si_, Ezio. Assassins," Niccolo said patiently. "We are working to defend our values against the threat of the Templar's values."

The word 'Templar' rang a bell in Ezio's head. They were a religious group, if he remembered his childhood lessens correctly. Unfortunately he remembered little beyond that. "So it is like a religious dispute." Ezio was trying to wrap his head around the concept.

Mario looked uncomfortable, and Ezio could swear he heard La Volpe snort. Niccolo was the one who answered him, though. "Not quite as the way you are thinking. We are not debating over whose religion is the correct one. Rather we are warring over what way society should be run. It could even be said that the Templars have lost sight of their Christian religion, though they still use it as a tool to further their political ends."

Ezio was more than a little curious now. "And what do you… _Assassins_ believe?"

Niccolo was fast in replying. It seemed he had argued this issue several times already in the past. "We believe that the people within each society have the right to make their own decisions in life. Every person should be granted a certain amount of freedom from the moment they are born. The Templars, on the other hand, believe that only when people are all the same can we all be happy. The only way to do such a thing is to _force_ everyone to be the same, and that requires a form of imprisonment and slavery."

Ezio thought he followed. "So you are saying that you want people to be themselves and to be different, but these… Templars want them to be the same, and they try to enslave people to do that?" Niccolo nodded. Ezio had some questions, though. "But what about people who you think are bad? Do you still want them to have freedom, or are you going to imprison them yourselves? And if so, then how are you different from the Templars?" Ezio felt a little proud of himself for coming up with that. Who knew he could seriously debate politics? Perhaps he should think of a career change once this was all over….

Niccolo seemed surprised by his insight, but he still answered quickly enough. "People should have the freedom to make that decision, no matter if it is good or bad. We also have the freedom to decide, the _duty_ even, to choose to oppose decisions that are what we consider bad. We do not think that they should be forced into believing what someone else thinks. While it is true that it may bring about peace and equality, it does this by taking away the part of a person that is most meaningful to them – their very soul. And that is what the Templars propose to do. They wish to take away our freedom of choice and instill in us a sense of servitude so that we follow whatever _their_ ideals and values may be."

"And how do the Templars plan to do this?" Ezio never really thought he could get into such deep discussions, but he was genuinely curious to hear the answer.

"That is one of the things we have come here to address. The Templars believe that they have the perfect way of going about getting what they want. In truth, it will likely work, too." Niccolo began to pace slowly, though his voice remained calm. "You see, Ezio, we have been searching for a certain artifact for years now. The Codex pages you have been gathering were supposed to be clues as to where this artifact was being held."

"And this artifact is?"

"It is called the Apple of Eden. The Apple is an artifact that is said to hold all the truths of the world, but that is not all it can do. We are not sure of the details, but in Altair's Codex, we have read that it has the ability to control a person's mind."

Now Ezio was dubious. This seemed a little more farfetched than a secret war going on between two religious factions. "It can control people?" He could hear the doubt in his own voice.

"_Si_, Ezio. It can control people. If you doubt, then I assume you doubt the integrity of the man who claimed this was so."

"More like I doubt his sanity, Messer."

"And yet you wear those weapons." Ezio looked with surprise down at his hidden blade. "If you remember, the designs for them came from Altair, from his Codex pages. You seem to put an awful lot of trust in _them_."

Ezio thought about that for a moment. "But that doesn't mean that he himself can be trusted."

"True, but think about this, then. Altair was a hero of his time. Not only was he considered the best assassin, but it has also been documented in our archives that he was the one who put an end to a terrible threat to the peace of that time. Namely the threat of the Apple of Eden. Doubt the Apple's powers if you so wish – you may even continue to doubt the man's sanity despite his many achievements – but there still remains the fact that _something_ happened, and it happened around the Apple. Whether it is powerful or not, it is a dangerous thing for us to allow our enemies to keep it. Ezio, it is paramount that we get the Apple before the Templars can use it against us."

Ezio considered that, but couldn't find anything wrong with it. Yet. "All right, Messer. But why are you telling _me_ this?"

"Because, _nipote_," Mario stood from his desk. "You are the one who is most able to get it back for us. We have trained you as best we may, and you have exceeded us."

Ezio hesitated, still doubtful. "I'm not so sure about this."

Mario sighed. "Listen Ezio. I had hoped you would help us for our ideals, but it seems I have no choice now but to appeal to your sense of justice. The Templars were the ones who killed your father. He was an Assassin, and they killed him for it. Rodrigo is the most likely leader of them at the moment, so it is highly probable that he had something to do with Giovanni's execution. The two had been at each other's throats before, and it was only a matter of time before one or the other won out."

Ezio froze as the words slipped into his head and mingled there, trying to form meaning. His father had been an Assassin? And this… Rodrigo had killed him for it? "So then… it was Rodrigo who did all this? Who was behind all these schemes to take over the cities? And he did it so that he could enslave everyone?"

"Yes, Ezio," Niccolo said. "And now he has the Apple, a powerful artifact that will likely be very bad for us should it remain in his possession for long."

Ezio made up his mind then. No matter what else, he was going to kill the son of a bitch. He looked at the men and woman around him, saw their patient faces as he came to his decision. These were the people who his father had died for. Them and their beliefs. As his father's son, could Ezio do any different? Yes, he would avenge his father's death, but in the process, he would finish what his father had been trying to do. He would finish the Templars once and for all. He nodded even as his mind settled on his resolve. The Templars would pay for what they had done, and they would die for what they intended to do.

* * *

**AN**: First off, some people might be wondering how La Volpe can move so fast, and how all the Assassins suddenly made it to the villa overnight. That will be explained. Eventually. Probably next chapter sometime. At least a little.

Also, yes, I skimmed past Claudia and Maria – I don't really feel like writing them; too many characters already. That's also the reason for why Paola never said anything.

Hmm, thinking about it more now, I _may_ be able to fit a bit of Paola into the sequel. I _did_ like her in the game, after all. Not quite sure yet, though....

**Italian-English translations:**

La Volpe = The Fox

La Topo = The Mouse

_Si _= Yes

_Certo _= Of course

_nipote _= nephew

_Bastardo _= Bastard


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer**: The Assassin's Creed series and its characters belong to Ubisoft/Ubisoft Montreal

**AN**: Urk, there's too much dialogue in this chapter! But I suppose it's necessary. These first chapters are pretty much outlining the current situation within which everything is taking place. It makes for slow movement in the fic, but I couldn't figure out a better way to write it all.

I also couldn't find a place where I could explain how La Volpe moves so fast. Again, there's already enough dialogue to last you all a lifetime, so I'll explain all that later on. The next chapter will also have more dialogue, but the one after that has LEONARDO!!! And Altair angst. Just thought I'd mention….

* * *

_He is angry with me, but not overly so. He had tried to go into the vault to hold the Apple, as I had suspected he would. When he found it gone, he panicked and came to me. So I told him that I put it somewhere else, and that I would not tell him where it was. He dislikes how I made him worry, but I think he understood the reasons for why I did what I did._

_Sometimes he would look at me as we both went over paperwork or trained new Assassins. I didn't see obsession in his eyes, though. More like curiosity. So I never got the impression that his obsession with the Piece of Eden was going to get the better of him. This was, of course, a prominent worry on my part. Obsession could cause a man to do things he wouldn't normally do, such as attack his friends for the sake of satiating that obsession. If Malik had ever given into that obsession, I might have been forced to kill him. But he never gave me reason to doubt that he was still my friend, for which I am grateful._

_Yet these looks he had been giving me have made me wonder at their origin. Perhaps I am blinded by hope, but I wondered also if maybe he _did_ return my feelings. I wondered this until I could not stand it anymore and decided on an indirect approach to finding out the reasons behind his strange glances._

_The sun was hiding itself behind grey, ominous clouds. It seemed like it would rain soon, but no matter. I had a mission, and luckily for me it was inside the cover of the stronghold. I walked silently up the steps and made my way over to the Master's desk. _My_ desk. It was a strange concept that I was finding difficult to accept, but with Malik more or less sharing it with me, it didn't seem as strange as it could have been._

_As usual, the one armed man was sitting there shuffling through various important papers. Basically doing things I should be doing, but at least he enjoyed the work. I preferred more physical forms of work myself._

_I approached Malik and asked if he wished to join me in a drink. More specifically, if he wished to join me in a short break from the stresses of handling affairs in Masyaf and everywhere else where there were Assassins. I noticed the tired look in his eyes and realized that he must have been working since the morning of the previous day. I sighed to myself. Malik tended to lose himself in his work when he wasn't being monitored. But at the moment, it worked to my advantage. Malik was more open when he was tired. Add a few glasses of wine and I figured I would get _some_ answer out of him._

_Malik agreed readily enough, as I had known he would. We cleared the table, then slipped the bottle of wine and two small glasses out of a hidden compartment. I watched the way he poured the wine into the glasses with one hand, marveling at his control. Not a drop was spilled, but that was only to be expected. Malik had always been a prideful man. He had worked hard to do things one-handed as well as any other man could ever do them with both hands. I knew that he would rather die than be thought of as any less of a man because of having one less arm._

_We clinked our glasses together, then downed the whole of them in one go. Malik's face scrunched up a little. I had a feeling mine did as well, but the burning in my throat made it hard to tell._

_I attempted to clear my throat a little. "Only the strongest for us Masters, right Mal?"_

_He coughed a little. "Malik, Altair. My name is Malik. Please say it correctly."_

_I grinned. "But Mal is so much easier."_

"_Stop being so damned lazy. It is a wonder how you are the best assassin among us." I held my glass out once more, and Malik obliged me. We shared another drink and scrunched up faces._

"_It is simple, Malik. I am better because I _think_ that I am better. It is that mentality which puts me above the rest of you." There was a time when I would have said that and actually believed it. Now I merely say it so I can see Malik glare at me._

"_Ooh, so the secret of your famed skills is because of your insufferable arrogance! I see now, Altair. _Thank_ you for making it so _clear_ to me." I could almost see the sarcasm drip from his lips._

"_Of course, my friend. I live but to serve you."_

_Malik's right eye twitched. I loved it when his right eye twitched. It meant I was successfully annoying him. But I have a mission, I remind myself, so unfortunately I can't push this game of ours too far. I decided a change in subject was in order._

"_How are you feeling?"_

_Malik looked confused. "I am doing rather well, thank you."_

_I elaborated. "I mean with the Piece of Eden. I noticed you haven't been showing signs of obsession. I merely wanted to know if the compulsion to look into it was still there."_

"_Oh, right. That." He sighed. "Well, the compulsion is still there, but I can handle it. As long as the Apple is out of my reach, anyway." He grimaced as he said this, and I understood the reason. Malik, being the prideful man that he was, didn't like admitting weaknesses in himself, and he certainly didn't like admitting them to me. But it was something I admired about him as well. No matter how proud he was, he would put that pride aside in a second if it were to risk other people's lives._

_And it was then that he gave me that strange look again. My heart skipped, but I beat it down. There was no sense in getting my hopes up just yet._

_I returned his strange look with one of confusion on my part. "What? Is there something wrong?"_

_Malik just continued to look at me for a moment before answering. "You know, Altair, a long time ago I had thought there was no possible way a person like you could ever be good for anything other than to piss people off. Granted, you are _still _very good at that," My mouth twitched, but I was somehow able to keep the smirk off my lips. "But I think I see more in you now. You are not the man you once were. You are not the man that nearly screwed us all after nearly losing the Apple. The man that lost me my brother and my arm." Here I flinched. I had apologized profusely about that ever since becoming Master, but no matter how many times he says that he has forgiven me, I cannot seem to forgive myself. "You have changed, Altair. And for the better, I think." He sat up further in his chair. "That was one of the reasons why I suggested that you become Master." I snorted. Malik hadn't so much suggested as '_made it happen_'. He continued, ignoring me. "Because there was something different about you. As if you had a sense of responsibility now. A responsibility to the people we are meant to be protecting." He shook his head. "I almost hate to admit this, Altair, but I am happy to be your friend and to have you as my friend." He smiled a small but warm smile at me._

_I knew my answer then. I knew that I had indeed been entertaining false hopes. No, Malik doesn't feel for me the same that I feel for him, nor would he ever. He only considered me a friend, and that was all he would ever consider me. I felt like my heart had been torn in two. No, that it had been torn and shredded into so many little pieces that I now wonder if I will ever be able to bind it all back together._

_I didn't let it show on my face. I didn't want Malik to worry or suspect. I just wanted things to go back to the way they were before when I could watch him and tease him to my heart's content without feeling this rejected attraction to him._

_I told him not long after to go to bed. He argued that there was still so much that needed to be done, but I told him I would do the rest of the day's paperwork for him. He made me swear to it, and I made him swear that he would go straight to sleep. Once he was finally satisfied, he left, and I took up where he had stopped. Though I normally don't enjoy this type of work, it proved to be a very welcome distraction from the turmoil going on in my heart._

* * *

Paola and Niccolo left early the next morning, and La Volpe had disappeared sometime in the night. Ezio was able to catch up to Antonio before he made it out too far from the villa. He had to know about the problems in Venezia, especially since they were probably his fault in the first place. Antonio gave him a warm smile as Ezio rode his horse up next to the thief. At least he didn't seem to hold a grudge against Ezio, which made Ezio feel a little better.

"You said that there were problems in Venezia, but I noticed how that man, Niccolo, never really went back to the subject. I was wondering, my friend, if you could tell me what has been happening since I've been gone."

"So that you can feel guilty about it?" Antonio chuckled as Ezio looked away with a small wince. "Normally I would not wish to trouble a friend so, but I fear that it is not something any of us should ignore so easily." His voice drifted off, and Ezio had the feeling he was thinking of Niccolo. The man had obviously felt Antonio's problems were of little import considering how he barely even acknowledged them. Antonio sighed. "There are many troubles in Venezia of late. The new Doge, Marco Barbarigo, is a known Templar. Yet it isn't just this that worries me. It is how he has been ruling the city thus far." Antonio scowled darkly. "The man stays locked away in his Palazzo, refusing to hear complaints from the people or to see how they are being treated. His soldiers run wild now that they have no one to watch over them. The only thing that man seems to care about anymore is the nobility and the Veneziano fleet. We were under the impression that the fleet was the reason for why the Templars wanted the city in the first place, and now they have it." Antonio threw up his hands in defeat. "_Dio mio_! Why are we so slow in taking care of this problem? If Venezia were to be lost to us, not only would the people suffer under the Templar rule as they have already, but we suddenly have a strong enemy in the entire Veneziano fleet. Beyond that, it gives them a seat of power, and one we can ill afford them to have."

Antonio went silent, and Ezio could see the anger that he held in him. An anger born of a helplessness that came from watching people suffer but not being able to help them no matter how much he wanted to. Ezio understood that feeling all too well. He recalled the time he had watched his father and brothers be hung. He had thought that everything was fine, but when the man who was supposed to help them had instead turned on him and his family, Ezio didn't know what to do. Certainly he had tried to save them, but he had already known that it was too late to do anything. There were times when Ezio believed he should have seen the deception in the man's eyes, or that he should have relied less on the man and more on himself. But the fact still remained that when the time came, he had been helpless. For Antonio, the pain was on a larger scale in that it was an entire city of people who would be suffering for a long time if nothing was done to save them, but Ezio understood it nonetheless.

"I spoke with Niccolo before he left," Antonio continued. "I told him all this and more. I told him that Marco needed to be killed as quickly as possible, but he would not listen, as usual. He thinks the Apple is the biggest threat, and that the only city we should truly concern ourselves with is Roma, the capital. Granted, they are both important enough in their own rights, but if we lose too many of the other cities to the Templars, we won't stand a chance. He can be so short-sighted at times. How can he not understand how these problems threaten to our Order?"

Ezio had no answer to that. They rode in silence for a few minutes before another thought occurred to Ezio. "He seems a little different from the rest of you. Not as passionate, I think." Ezio tried to recall the speech the man had given him the night before. Niccolo had remained calm the entire time, and his responses had seemed to Ezio to be merely words which he had memorized but did not think about. "All his words were pretty enough, but he sounded more like a teacher lecturing on a subject that he didn't care about rather than a man defending his beliefs."

Antonio nodded in understanding. "Yes, he _did_ sound that way. But then, he was the one who was most opposed to having you do this when we have yet to see your true potential, which may have had something to do with it." Ezio's brows rose in surprise. It hadn't occurred to him that some of the Assassins might not have wanted his help. "He believed that we didn't know enough about you, about whether you held the same values as us or not. He also argued that you may not be up to the task."

"Then what happened to make him change his mind?"

"Oh, he didn't change his mind, Ezio. He has simply resigned himself to the fact that there is no one else who _can_ do it now. There are only two of us left who are skilled enough in the ways of assassination to take on this mission. A third was your father, but unfortunately he cannot help us anymore. One of those left is La Volpe." Here, Antonio paused, a small smile on his lips. "It was La Volpe who argued that you should be the one to do this. He told us in no uncertain terms that he would not get the Apple for us. And before you ask, no, _amico mio_, I do not know what La Volpe's motives are for doing this."

Ezio nodded, deciding that he would ask La Volpe when he next had the chance. Not that he thought the man would actually _tell_ him, but it was worth a try.

Antonio continued. "Niccolo is a rather good assassin himself, so he would have been the next in line to inherit the mission of retrieving the Apple. However, there are certain other issues involved that complicate things and make it a very _bad_ idea to put this task on him." Antonio's forehead creased as he tried to think of the best way to explain it. "You see, Ezio, Niccolo is attempting to infiltrate the Templars Order by trying to _become_ one. That is, he acts like a Templar in public. He talks like them, preaches the same things they do, and he even published a book – I believe he called it _The Prince_ – that consists of and argues for ideals that the Templars most value. It is a fairly powerful tactic. Already he has been granted offers to dine with notable Templars, but he has yet to get into the 'inner circle' of the Templar Order, so to speak. However, I imagine it is only a matter of time." Antonio smiled wryly at Ezio. "The rest of us don't like him very much – too arrogant and stately for our tastes. But then, those qualities of his are why we agree that he should be the one to try to infiltrate the Templar Order."

"But aren't you afraid he might turn on you? That he might decide that he prefers the Templars' views over yours?"

Antonio laughed lightly. "No, Ezio. We do not fear that he will turn traitor. He may not have sounded as eager to oppose the Templars as we do, but the feeling _is_ there. He has simply taught himself to hide it well so that the Templars will not notice that he is not quite one of them."

They rode in silence a little while longer. Then another thought occurred to Ezio. "Niccolo said that some of the Assassins that were supposed to be here weren't. Do I know them as well? And if so, what are they doing? Are they in trouble as well?"

Antonio bit his lip. "Yes and no. One that should've been there but was not was a man by the name of Bartolomeo d'Alviano. He controlled the mercenaries of Venezia." Antonio looked at Ezio. "You see, he enjoyed fighting more than the usual man, so when the troubles began, he took up his sword and set about creating a bloody mess of things." Antonio smiled grimly in memory, then sighed. "Unfortunately, he was arrested and hung soon after. The rest of his mercenaries are now in hiding." Antonio shook his head sadly. "I have tried to ask for their help, but they would prefer to lick their wounds and mourn for their dead instead. Because of this, there is only me and Sister Theodora left to defend the citizens."

Ezio blinked. "Sister Theodora? Who is she?"

Antonio blushed. "Ah, well, um, she is a friend of mine. And an Assassin, of course. Perhaps you will get to meet her some day before this is all done. She has a rather… interesting philosophy on life that I think you may find to your liking."

Ezio raised an eyebrow at that, sensing there was something in that statement that he was missing. He made another mental note to go see this… Sister Theodora when he next had the chance.

But that was for another time. Ezio waved goodbye to Antonio soon after that, then turned his horse back to his uncle's villa. They still weren't sure where and when Rodrigo was going to come back to Italia, so Ezio was left to wait at the villa for word from La Volpe. It wasn't long in coming, though. In fact, it was the next day. Ezio woke suddenly to find the smirking face of La Volpe above his head as the thief leaned over the Assassin's bed. Ezio nearly screamed. La Volpe's face was not the most pleasant thing to wake up to in the morning. Or any time, for that matter.

Ezio made a decision then. The next time La Volpe decided to scare the shit out of him like that, Ezio was going to kill him. Fellow Assassin or not.

* * *

**AN**: First off, I don't drink alcohol. Even on my 21st birthday, I adamantly refused to drink alcohol (21 is the age that people in my country/state are legally allowed to drink alcohol, for those that don't know. In my experience, most people consider their 21st birthday the perfect day to go out and get _legally_ drunk for the first time (assuming they aren't the designated driver or something). I felt no such compulsion). In other words, I know nothing about wine or beer or whatever. So I'm sorry if wine doesn't burn the throat like I had said it did in the beginning of this chapter.

Now for my rant on Niccolo Machiavelli. That guy would NEVER have been an Assassin. At least not in my book. I honestly have no idea _what_ they were thinking when they made him an Assassin in the game. But, since it _is_ part of the game, I had to figure out some way to incorporate him into the Assassin group. This chapter shows the attempt on my part to do exactly that – find a way to make it seem like Niccolo actually belongs in the Assassin's Order rather than the Templar's. Despite wanting to slam my head against the wall the entire time I was figuring it all out, I think I did a rather good job of it.

And is it just me or are the people in my fic just _really_ into having others say their name correctly? It's happened at least once per chapter so far. I find that kinda funny, especially since I didn't even realize I was writing like that until just now.

**Italian-English translations**:

Veneziano = Venetian

_Dio mio _=My God

_amico mio_ = my friend


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer**: The Assassin's Creed series and its characters belong to Ubisoft/Ubisoft Montreal

**AN**: Thank you to those who reviewed! You make me all kinds of happy ^^. Also, thank you to anyone who hasn't reviewed but is still reading. Having a small amount of reviews won't get me down, but having no one reading the fic at all would, lol. So thanks for sticking with me, despite your apparent need for continued anonymity ;P

I didn't have as much time to edit this chapter as I would have liked, unfortunately. So any mistakes you see, do tell and I'll fix 'em up.

Anyway, on with the fic =D!

* * *

_I can feel my resolve weakening. Some day soon, I know that I will have to place the Piece of Eden in a more permanent hiding place, but such a thing is easier to consider in thought than it is to put into action. Already I have found a suitable location, but I am hesitant about bringing it there. Not because of any logical reason, but simply because I do not want to give it up. It has a hold on me, and that hold clutches tighter at my being with each passing day._

_I sometimes wonder at the reason for this, for why I am being so effected by the Apple now when before I was able to resist it with relative ease, at least compared to my fellow Assassins here in Masyaf. I concluded that it likely had something to do with my revelation from mere days ago when I had finally understood that Malik would only ever see me as a friend and nothing more. A revelation that still works to tear my heart to pieces should I think overly much about it._

_Of course, in my search to find a place where the Apple can be kept, I also understood the need for the Assassin's Order to know this location, for what if one day they need to use it? And yet, I have also made sure that it will be difficult to get to. If there ever comes a time when they need its help, I want them to be certain of this need. I want them to prove themselves by risking their very lives, in almost the same manner as when we each prove our loyalty to the Creed by allowing our fingers to be severed. It must be understood that the Apple is a dangerous thing, and none should try to use it unless it is absolutely necessary._

_I have created a map that will lead to the Piece of Eden. It is a hidden map that may only be seen through the eagle vision. Furthermore, I have placed it in a book of pages that Malik and I have been working on. This book will be our Codex, a collection of the skills and knowledge we as Assassins must understand: how to assassinate, different weapons which can be used to perform those assassinations, and several pages devoted to my discoveries concerning the Apple of Eden._

_All this I have figured out, yet with the Apple's constricting hold on me, I find myself no closer to solving the problem of _getting_ it there…._

* * *

La Volpe fluttered his eyelashes at him. "Wake up, _bella donna_!I have some information you might want to know." The thief had a strange sense of humor. Ezio took a swipe at him with a lazy fist, but as usual the man was too nimble for him. La Volpe laughed at him. "Is that any way to treat someone who is trying to help you?"

Ezio sat up and rubbed his eyes. "No, Messer. That is the way I treat someone who is trying to be funny but is failing miserably."

La Volpe gasped and clutched at his chest. "Oh, _Dio mio_! I think your merciless words have pierced my heart!" He fell to the ground and rolled around on his back in mock pain. "Oh woe is me! I have been slain by a sharp tongued brat! Damn you, cruel world! I shall not miss you!"

Ezio stared at him a moment. "You are a little strange in the mornings, aren't you."

La Volpe stopped twisting on the floor and sat up with a contemplative look. "Come to think of it, I've heard that all geniuses have _something_ that is strange about them. For me, perhaps it is my sense of humor."

"I think you need to work on your modesty along with that 'sense of humor' of yours, Messer."

"Nonsense. I am perfect just the way I am. And we are equals within the Order, Ezio. You may call me La Volpe."

Ezio chuckled despite himself. One minute La Volpe was bitter and remorseful, then serious and apathetic the next, then laughing happily after that. Ezio wondered how many faces La Volpe truly possessed. He decided to try a compromise. "All right. If you promise not to wake me up like that again, then I'll call you La Volpe."

"Deal! Now get up. Mario is waiting for us in his study."

Ezio groaned and slid off the side of the bed. The cold floor sent shivers through him when got to his feet. He yawned and stretched luxuriously, then stopped short as he saw La Volpe was still in the room waiting for him. He glared at the older man. "Could you leave? I do not like to dress in front of people."

La Volpe gave him a mixed look of amusement and disgust. "Except for those whom you sleep with, _si_?" Ezio blushed a little, but La Volpe gave him some respect and turned around. "I find modesty to be a strange trait in an Auditore."

"Despite my… nightly activities, I do not always like to flaunt my body for all to see."

"Ah, so it is only to those whom you wish to impress in a sexual manner that you flaunt yourself?"

Ezio's blush deepened, but there was no argument he could say to that since it was true. As he dressed, Ezio decided to change the subject. "How is it that you were caught up in this business? With the Assassins and Templars?"

"Somehow." La Volpe answered quickly. Slipping his pants on, Ezio waited for more, but as usual the thief was not too keen on talking about himself.

Biting down the urge to throttle the man, Ezio decided to try again. "Can you at least tell me what you do? And you may turn around now." He finished buttoning his shirt, and La Volpe turned to look at him, raising a brow.

"I do many things, Ezio." He seemed to consider the question more carefully, though. "I suppose if you are to join us, you might as well know a bit about the way things work with us." Ezio paused in putting his boots on, listening intently. "Each of the major cities, Firenze, Venezia, Roma, and many others have safe houses which some of us older Assassins call Bureaus. Others of us call them for what they are to the public: thieves' dens, brothels, your uncle's villa, and so on. Each Bureau has its own faction related to it. The thieves' dens contain thieves, the brothels contain prostitutes, and places like Mario's villa contain mercenaries. Each of these factions has leaders. In Firenze, I lead the thieves, Paola leads the prostitutes. In Venezia, Antonio leads the thieves, and Theodora leads the prostitutes. Bartolomeo was the leader of the mercenaries, but he unfortunately decided to go and get himself killed. The other cities you don't need to know about just yet.

"We each have our own missions within these cities. Generally we try to keep the peace, while at the same time fight off Templars that are trying to take over. Some of us are granted other missions, like Niccolo, myself, and your father. Niccolo is one of the few of us who has the necessary abilities to attempt to infiltrate the Templar Order and spy on them from the inside. For myself, I take care of communication between all the Assassins within Italia. I also gather information and pass it on to everyone for whom that information concerns. Your father… he was an assassin. He was tasked with the dirty job of discreetly taking out overly troublesome Templars."

"Like me," Ezio said bluntly.

La Volpe looked at him a moment, his eyes turning soft, then nodded. "_Si_, Ezio. Like you."

Ezio found himself nodding in return. He had the feeling that he wouldn't have wanted this any other way.

Having nothing else to say that was particularly important, they quickly made their way to Mario's office. The mercenary was standing by the window with a wine glass in hand, though Ezio had the feeling there was something a little stronger than his usual wine in that glass.

Mario looked up and scowled. "About time you got here."

La Volpe took his place in the corner once more. "I was telling him a little about how we work. I figured he would need to know about us sooner rather than later."

Mario grunted, but said nothing more. He seemed a little irritable this morning, Ezio thought to himself.

La Volpe wasted no more time. "Rodrigo will be docking directly in Venezia rather than in Roma like I had first thought. Perhaps he heard about the change in circumstances there. It will be quick work for him to get into the Palazzo in Venezia, and once there, there will be no way of getting to him. Not even your little flying demon, Ezio. He will have archers stationed everywhere on the roof."

Ezio cursed. He had been hoping that they would be too stupid to learn from their previous mistake as had happened in the past when they had underestimated him, but it did not seem like that would be the case this time.

La Volpe continued. "The best time to strike is as soon as he gets to the docks, perhaps even when he is still on the ship." Here he looked at Ezio. "There will be little chance for you to get to him after that. Archers will be lining the rooftops all along his path, and he will be surrounded by loyal Templar Guards who are much more dangerous than your average city guard. If you were to strike while he walked through the streets, he and every other Templar there will likely see you coming a mile away."

Ezio thought about it a moment. "What about Antonio? And any other Assassins there?"

"Antonio won't be able to help. He is too busy with the local soldiers and keeping himself and his men alive. Theodora and her women won't be much use since the Templar Guards aren't the type to have their attentions diverted so easily. Bartolomeo's men are still drowning themselves in self pity, so I wouldn't count on them either."

Ezio bit his lip in frustration. "So it is just us."

"Actually, Ezio, it is just you."

Ezio blinked. "You mean you aren't even coming with me? Antonio told me you were an assassin too. You must be able to do _something_ to help me!"

La Volpe smiled sheepishly and raised his hands in apology. "I'm afraid I've given up the life of a murderer, my friend, and my reasons for doing so are my own." Ezio really should've expected that last from La Volpe. It didn't make him any less frustrated with the man, however. "All I can do now is council. The act itself is up to you." La Volpe thought a moment. "Of course, this problem could've easily been diverted had _someone_ among us sent help to Venezia earlier rather than procrastinating because of a wounded pride." La Volpe didn't _quite_ look at Mario.

The mercenary scowled but said nothing for once. He knew when his pride went too far.

Ezio nodded. "Very well. I'll think of something."

Mario cut in. "I will be sending mercenaries to Venezia one week after you leave. They may not be able to help with Rodrigo, but they should be in time to help you _keep_ the Apple once you have it." When he saw that Ezio was still dubious about setting off on his own, Mario grinned widely at him. "_Non preoccuparsi_, _nipote_. We trained you well. You will do us good. I know it." He clapped Ezio amiably – though hard – on the shoulder. Ezio was nearly knocked to the ground from the force, but managed to keep his feet under him. He appreciated the faith his uncle had in him, but he knew that with something like this he would need help.

Not an hour later, Ezio was on one of his uncle's best horses and swiftly making his way to Venezia. Rodrigo was docking there soon, and he needed as much time as he could get to think of something. Yet even as he rode, the beginnings of that plan were forming, and he decided that when he got to the city, his first order of business rested with contacting a certain engineer.

* * *

As Ezio's form slowly vanished into the horizon, La Volpe crouched on the edge of the roof of the villa and peered off into the distance where a small cloud drifted lazily across the otherwise clear sky.

A heavy step was heard behind him, and he cringed at Mario's clear lack of skill in the ways of stealth. The man plopped down next to him, swinging his legs over the edge.

"Given up the life of a murderer, eh?"

La Volpe scowled in his general direction but kept his eyes on the cloud. He wasn't in the mood to spar words with the mercenary.

Mario, however, ignored the look. "I don't believe it for a second. You could damn well go to Venezia and take care of Rodrigo with one hand tied behind your back. And you would but for some reason I cannot possibly fathom." Still, the thief said nothing, but Mario hadn't given up yet. Tenacious curiosity ran in the Auditore family, after all. "Why, La Volpe? Why did you say you would no longer kill? Why did you insist that we get Ezio to do it instead? What are you trying to _do_?"

La Volpe bit his lip, but still refused to look at him. Finally, he sighed. "Mario, I am not going to be around forever. The Assassins depend on me enough already. Before, there was Giovanni who could take care of any assassinations I couldn't get to, but now…." He glanced sideways at Mario. "There needs to be someone else around besides me who can do these things. You and the others are best in your own respective tasks. Antonio with organizing the thieves and rebelling against the Templar authorities, Theodora and Paola with their skills in subterfuge and seduction, you mercenaries and your fighting skills. Niccolo used to be a fair enough assassin, but his skills are best used in politics and deception now. Actual assassination was something Giovanni and I were best at. We each have our position in this Order, but with Giovanni gone, I find myself hard pressed to keep up with the demands made on me by the others. Now, however, we suddenly have Ezio, who has done a more than good enough job with his targets."

Realization dawned on Mario. "You are testing him. By letting him go off on his own like this, you are trying to see how well he can do what you and Giovanni did."

La Volpe nodded. "_Si_. I need to know if he can do this, no matter how impossible the situation may seem."

They fell into silence then, and La Volpe's thoughts drifting off into his own world. After a moment, Mario got up and stretched, then said, "We can't afford to lose this chance to take out Rodrgio. You know that." La Volpe didn't answer him, and Mario sighed in resignation. "I hope you know what you're doing, La Topo."

La Volpe blinked out of his wayward thoughts, then grinned grandiosely up at the larger man. "_Certo_!"

* * *

**AN**: Is it just me, or is anyone else starting to see a Mario/La Volpe pairing forming? My fangirl senses were tingling the entire time I was writing this….

And yes, La Volpe was a little strange in this chapter, but I swear I did it on purpose! The game gave me a lot of room to develop him in my own way, so I took full liberty and created a man with a very interesting character (or at least he's interesting to me). Actually, I have been thinking of writing another fic about his past, sort of like a prequel to this one, but it would revolve around La Volpe, Mario, Giovanni and whoever else I happen to throw in rather than Ezio, Altair, and Leonardo. Don't know yet, though. We'll see.

**Italian-English translations**:

La Volpe = The Fox

_bella donna_ = beautiful woman

_Dio mio _= My God

_si_ = yes

_Non preoccuparsi_, _nipote_ = Do not worry, nephew

_Certo _= Of course

La Topo = The Mouse


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer**: The Assassin's Creed series and its characters belong to Ubisoft/Ubisoft Montreal

**AN**: Again, didn't have much time to edit, so tell me if you catch anything. Other than that, just want to thank my reviewers and readers again, and enjoy the next chapter (AND LEO!! =D)!

* * *

_Malik is getting married tomorrow._

_I sit in my room and stare at the wall for a while. It was just so sudden, overwhelming. I didn't really think it would hurt this much, though I had always known the day would come where he would forever be out of my reach. Even at the time when he had made it clear to me – though he was not aware of doing so – that he only considered me a friend, I got myself to think that maybe things could change. I guess it didn't really hit me until now._

_His wife-to-be is beautiful. He comes to me every so often to praise her, and to ask me what she could possibly see in a man like him. A man with only one arm. A man with a short temper. A man who was and always will be an Assassin. I could give him an entire list, but I don't. I just tell him that there is no sense or reason to why people love each other. It is just something that is there, overpowering even the most logical of minds. I should know, of course. Logic should have told me that a man could not love another man. Not in this world. It was alien, unacceptable, atrocious even. I knew better than to wear this part of myself outside of my mask, to show people that I loved another man. They would never accept it. Malik would never…. But then, as my friend, perhaps he would. He was always understanding like that. It is one of the many things I love about him._

_I look out the window and see the dimming light of the dying sun, and I think to myself that it should be raining. Then I realized how foolish such a thought was, but I can't help but feel that the sky should match my mood._

_There was much to be done tomorrow, much for me to do to make Malik the happiest he has ever been. I should be sleeping, but instead I sit here and pity myself. I really am such a fool. _

* * *

"Leonardo."

The artist looked up from his sketches in surprise. Ezio came closer into the light, smiling gently. It had been some time since Ezio had been there last, and Leonardo had probably assumed the assassin would not be back for a while yet considering that the Doge and his men were still out looking for his head.

"Ezio! _Dio mio_, it is so good to see you again! Alive!" Leonardo walked quickly over to him – almost ran, in fact – and pulled the Assassin into a tight hug. Ezio, not quite expecting to be _that_ welcomed, hardly had time to return the hug before Leonardo drew back to examine him. "You haven't been shaving like usual."

Trust Leonardo to notice the little things. Ezio ran a hand over the light stubble spread out on his chin. "It is a new look. Do you like it?"

Leonardo looked at him with a critical eye. "You look mature now. It does not suit you at all."

Ezio glared at him. He hadn't actually wanted a critique of his appearance. "Thank you, Leonardo," he said dryly. "I'll keep that in mind."

Leonardo blushed, seeming to realize his mistake. "N-not that it doesn't look good or anything! You look very handsome! Really!" Then his blush deepened. "I mean, from one friend speaking to another, of course."

As usual, Ezio couldn't stay angry at the man. He chuckled and clapped the artist on his shoulder. "I understand, _amico mio_."

Leonardo smiled weakly, then brightened. "You must be here for something. Please, how may I be of service?"

The artist knew him too well. But then, Ezio usually did only come here when he wanted something. Perhaps someday Ezio would surprise him by _bringing_ a gift instead of asking for one. For now, however, there was business to discuss.

"_Si_, Messer. I have a request." Leonardo watched him expectantly, the small smile still on his lips. "I need a way to get onto a ship that will be docking here soon. Preferably while the passengers are still aboard, and without anyone noticing."

Leonardo considered Ezio's problem, then said, "I may have a solution for you. Give me just a moment." He went to the other side of his workshop to dig through some of the scrolls stacked there, all the while mumbling to himself about being too disorganized. Ezio took a step forward to see what he was going through, but the man suddenly rose with a scroll clutched in his hand. "Ah ha! I've found it!" Leonardo motioned him over to the table in the middle of the room where he laid out the scroll before them. As was usually the case when Leonardo first showed him one of his inventions, Ezio had no idea what he was looking at. "These are the blueprints for an outfit that may allow a man to swim under the water for long periods of time." Oh. "I made these designs when I first came here to Venezia. In such a place surrounded by water, it would be a great asset for the city to be able to traverse the water without needing a boat. Or to walk along the sea floor, even! Swimming is all well and good, but with this, I had hoped a swimmer would be able to stay under the water for as long as they wished. But, as with the flying machine, I haven't tested it yet-"

"I trust you. Is it made?"

Leonardo looked at him, confused. "Is it what?"

"Made. Built. Have you built it yet?"

"Ah! That!" Leonardo placed a hand on his chin as he thought about it. "Well, I suppose I have to some extent, but I stopped constructing it a while ago. The Veneziano council that I had presented it to wasn't interested in trying something so different, so there was no sense in continuing. But I should be able to complete it in a couple of days if I must."

"_Va bene_, Leonardo. We will test it as soon as you are done."

Leonardo hesitated, and Ezio wondered if he was finally going to ask what Ezio was trying to do. After all this time of making weapons when the artist was a self-proclaimed pacifist, it was a wonder why he had never questioned Ezio about his intentions before. And yet, Leonardo surprised him once again. "If you are coming from the water, then I assume you will also need a way to scale up the side of the ship."

Ezio blinked. He hadn't thought that far ahead. "Uh, _si_. That is a problem."

Leonardo thought a moment. "I suppose you could hammer nails into the side and climb up those."

Ezio winced. "That doesn't strike me as being very quiet, Leonardo."

Leonardo blushed and shrugged helplessly. "Good ideas take a little time, Ezio. Let me to consider the prob- ah, wait! I've got it!" A typical Leonardo moment, and Ezio had to smile to himself. It was at that instant that Ezio realized how much he had missed the artist and all his enthusiasm. Leonardo quickly and eagerly described his idea. "Before a ship docks, officials must come aboard to see the captain's papers that show he has a right to dock in the city and that they aren't harboring criminals or smuggling illegal merchandise. At this time, an official boat will come up to the side of the ship."

Ezio interrupted him, curious. "How do you know all this?"

Leonardo smiled. "I watch. I like watching people – what they do, how they go about doing it. It is a favored hobby of mine. I've watched the docks a few times before; it is difficult to miss them in a city that lies so close to water. So I saw that a small, official boat will always slide up beside the incoming ships," Leonardo continued. "The ship lowers a rope ladder to them, and they climb aboard. Usually, if I remember correctly, the ladder stays there until the officials are done inspecting the ship and leave. If you can time it so that you get to the ship when they are on board, you could use that ladder!"

Ezio smiled. He really had missed the man.

Leonardo let him sleep there for the night (and however many other nights Ezio wanted to stay), and being as exhausted as he was, Ezio went straight to bed. He still had three days before Rodrigo was to dock there, and there were many worries that plagued his mind. But after finding out about the war that had been going on right under his nose, along with the hard ride to Venezia, Ezio really just wanted to rest for a little while, and as usual, Leonardo's home proved a good place to do just that.

* * *

The sharpened stick of charcoal drifted across the wrinkled paper with skillful ease. First came the lines which encompassed the basic structure of the head, then the charcoal focused on more intricate details. The eyes were closed as the man who the charcoal attempted to draw slept, and the charcoal made sure to replicate the tranquility and calm that was evident in the peaceful face. A line here formed the crease separating the lips, and a line there followed the wave of a rebellious strand of hair that rested on the smooth cheek. A couple more lines to complete the outline of the strong jaw, and another at the nape of the neck to follow down to the start of the torso. The charcoal flitted outward to capture the relaxed set of the broad shoulders, the muscled arms, and the calloused hands.

When satisfied, it went back to accentuate the collarbone. From there the charcoal moved down to the chest that rose and fell in a steady rhythm, emphasizing the toned pectorals and the soft, slightly pointed bit of flesh in the middle of each. The charcoal attempted to continue down to the stomach but was halted by the boldness of a certain blanket that draped across the body. It shifted paths to trail along the ins and outs of the blanket. The covering draped over the side of the bed, and the charcoal followed it even there, easily catching the sharp angle created by the edge of the bed. After that, it rose back up and repeated the process, rising with the bumps and diving with the dips.

Leonardo worked quickly, but the piece was not one to linger on. It was only a beginning, a way to capture the essence of the scene in front of him before the slightest of movements on his model's part worked to change everything. The old, slightly torn paper would be his reference for when he put the art to canvas, and from there he would gather the rest of his tools to color it as exactly as he could from memory.

One could say that Leonardo was procrastinating, but that was just the way he was. Besides, he told himself, Ezio rarely slept at his home, and Leonardo might not get a chance to draw this moment again for a long time. The scene was just too perfect for him to simply pass by the chance to draw it.

He put the finishing touches on his basic drawing, shading in as best he could the lights and darks cast by the full moon onto the bed and the man sleeping within it. It could be considered a breach of privacy, what he was doing. Ezio had never conceded to being drawn. Actually, Leonardo had never asked him. Yet despite this, Leonardo just couldn't keep his hand still, and he certainly couldn't keep his eyes from roaming now that the man had finally let down his guard. He used to blush when he drew Ezio like this, but now the artist just realized that it was something he would never be able to stop himself from doing.

But overall, it was a rare happenstance when Ezio would relax, and it seemed to Leonardo that it only ever happened when the man slept. Leonardo didn't know if this was the way he always was, or if Ezio felt that this workshop was the only place where he _could_ relax, if only in sleep. If it was the latter, Leonardo was glad for it. The artist wanted nothing more than for Ezio to be happy and comfortable around him.

Well, of course, he would have been happier if Ezio had _loved_ him, as much as the artist loved the man, but Leonardo knew that such a thing was not possible. Ezio was a lover of beautiful women, not eccentric little artists – _male_ artists – like Leonardo.

No, Leonardo would have to suffice with stealing glimpses of the Ezio that he wanted but would never have. But with those glimpses, Leonardo would do what he did best: he would make them into masterpieces. And they would not be just any masterpieces. They would be the works of art that encompassed his dreams and fantasies. They would never be real in the way that Leonardo was real, but Leonardo would create his own reality where they would always have a place.

Leonardo sighed and shut the door to the guest room quietly. He made his way slowly back to his work area where he placed the paper on the table beside him and fell into the large red chair in front of the fire. He stared at the flames that swirled within, losing himself in his thoughts. Ever since he had first realized he was in love with Ezio, he had resigned himself to being alone. It was painfully obvious that Ezio would never have shared such feelings for the artist. But then, at least Leonardo had _some_ place in Ezio's heart, though it was only the place of a good friend. And a personal engineer. Leonardo smiled a little as he also realized that Ezio would never get better service from anyone else, so it was a good bet that the man would be coming around Leonardo and his workshop whenever he needed something for as long as either of them lived. And Leonardo _wanted_ him to come back. He always had second thoughts about the things that Ezio asked of him, but he would never go against the man he loved, no matter if the things he was asked to do went against everything he stood for.

Sometimes Leonardo wondered if there was any sense to love. At times like these, when he knew that he would throw away everything in the world that he held dear if Ezio told him to, it did not seem very likely.

He sighed again, then rose from his chair. He no longer felt motivated to start creating a masterpiece of his newest drawing of Ezio, but it was just as well. He needed to finish the diving suit he had promised, and that was more important anyway. Perhaps later, Leonardo thought. When he didn't have so many things that he needed to do.

The wrinkled paper was filed away in a chest, surrounded by scores of others depicting Ezio in other various positions. Other papers which Leonardo had also never been motivated enough to complete. The artist had never really been able to get passed the depression that came after drawing the man he loved. Perhaps someday he might be able to overcome it.

Leonardo doubted it, though.

* * *

**AN**: Poor Leo. Made me sad to write that last bit *sniffle*

Anyway, about the whole "an official boat goes out to inspect incoming ships" part, I have no idea if that's really true or not, nor do I have the time to look it up. It makes sense to me, and it works with the story, so let's just pretend that's the way it was, _si_? ;P

As for Leonardo's diving suit: yes, he really did invent one. I'm going to try and stay as close to the actual way he would have wanted it made as possible in the next chapter.

**Italian-English translations**:

_Dio_ _mio_ = My God

_amico_ _mio_ = my friend

_Si_ = Yes

Veneziano = Venetian

_Va bene_ = Very well


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer**: The Assassin's Creed series and its characters belong to Ubisoft/Ubisoft Montreal.

**AN**: We have now reached the point where I _don't_ have everything more or less written out beforehand. I'm going to need a bit of time to figure out how I'm going to go about doing the rest of the fic. And to put certain worries to rest: no, it's not a writer's block ;P. Actually, there are several ways in which I could go about continuing this, but I haven't decided yet which is the best one. Once I figure that out, I'll need to write it all, then I'll start posting again.

I'll keep you all updated on my profile page as to how far I've gotten with the rest of the fic, so check in there if you want a better idea of when I'll be posting the next chapter. For now, I'm going to guess and say that this will take 1 to 2 weeks.

As for a few comments about _this_ chapter, for any of you who have played the Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines game on the PSP, _forget everything you know about Altair and Maria_. This chapter is _my_ take on how they met after the first game and what happened afterward (and it clearly isn't canon, but I happen to like this version better, thank you). Also, since Ezio _is_ an ancestor of Altair's, prepare for a small Altair/Maria moment, though I don't go too much into it.

And to give credit where credit is due, I got the idea of the diving suit and how it could be made by watching a documentary called "Leonardo Da Vinci" (2004) where some people went off and tested Leonardo's inventions to see if they would've actually worked. I didn't stick to its design _completely_ since I first off didn't understand some of the technical stuff, and second since some of the things didn't strike me as being very helpful to Ezio.

* * *

_I'm not sure how much longer I can take this. I know I would never hurt Malik or his wife. That isn't the problem. It's trying to deal with this… this _loss_. This horrible emptiness inside. I feel like I've lost a part of myself that I can never get back, and it hurts. It used to be fine just seeing him smile with her. He is so happy, so in love with her and she with him, I can't help but be a little happy for him. For both of them. But it is no longer a consolation for me. Now I just see something that will never be mine. I see a smile that will never be just for me, a look in his eyes that will never be directed at me._

_Allah, but it hurts!_

_I run atop the rooftops in Acre, the moon shining in full high above me. It was a small vacation I granted myself to get away from it all, away from _him_. Why did I go to Acre? I hardly know anymore. I run and can't seem to stop. The guards shout at me, but I'm gone before they can do anything._

_Perhaps it's foolish of me, running around like this when the Templars would give their entire treasury for my head, and even more for the object that I still carry. But I need time to think, to sort things out. I don't know what to do anymore._

_I reach an area where no guards patrolled the rooftops. In the light of the moon I see that someone has joined me. A Templar, judging by his clothing. He runs beside me, and I suddenly realize that this Templar is familiar, but damned if I know from where. A sword rings out of its sheath, and he swings at me. I dodge the wide strike easily and draw my own sword, stopping and turning to face my opponent._

"_Heretic!" He shrieks at me, and I have only enough time to realize that I recognize the voice before we are engaged._

_He's good, a swift lash there, a quick jab here, but he is no match for me. I know that from the beginning, but I let him keep at me. I wonder at my hesitance to strike him down immediately like I normally would any Templar, but it occurs to me soon enough that I needed this. I needed to vent, to fight and battle this turmoil inside. The Templar, he is worthy enough to provide me with someone to test my strength against._

_I feel a cut on my arm, but it is nothing to worry about. I cut his leg, but not badly enough to inhibit him from continuing to press me. He surprises me, and my sword flies from my hand. Not to be outdone, I force my way past his sword, brushing it aside with my left hand and making my way inside his guard. My shoulder crashes into his chest, and I raise my elbow up to catch him under the chin. He falls back, momentarily stunned, and I suddenly remembered who he was. Who _she_ was. Maria, the Templar who had tricked me when I was targeting Robert de Sable. The one whom I had let live._

_She was up and coming at me again. Dodging to the side, I grabbed her sword arm and twisted, making her drop her weapon, then I punched her full in the helmet. It hurt, but that was all right. I wanted this. This fight, this pain, this rush of adrenaline. She stumbles back a little, then removes her dented helm. And I see in her eyes that she wanted this just as much as I did. A feral grin and she's after my throat with a dagger._

_We fight for a long time, until we both end up sitting across from each other in two exhausted heaps. I see in her eyes appreciation for my skill, and I find that I felt the same for her's. Where before she had been coming at me with a lust for vengeance, she now looked at me with a lust of a different sort._

"_Follow me," she said._

_I knew what she wanted. Just to tease her, I play innocent and say, "Why?"_

_Her eyes flash, and suddenly I am reminded of Malik and his equally short temper. But instead of attacking me again as I had expected, she just rose and turned away._

"_I won't ask again." And then she was off. Grabbing my sword along the way and sheathing it, I chased after her._

_I don't know why I followed her. I think that in a way I knew I needed this as well. I hardly pay attention to where she is taking me. All I see is her back before me, the casual way she leaps over obstacles, climbs up buildings, jumps from roof to roof. As easily as any Assassin. And suddenly she was in a tower, quickly shutting the door behind her. I knew this game. It was her last test for me._

_I climb up to the top with little difficulty, and there she was. Waiting for me. No words were spoken between us. We both knew why we were there._

_One could think it was desperation that drove us, and perhaps it was. For me it certainly was, but I don't know what her reasons were. Yet she hurried me to take her as much as I hurried to have her._

_When we finished, the moon was still high and shining brightly. But I looked down at her, and I knew that this would never happen again. I saw in her eyes that she had come to the same conclusion, perhaps had known it all along. She almost seemed sad to see me rise from our makeshift bed, and I kneel to kiss her forehead and caress her cheek. Not in love, but because I was sorry. I was sorry that I had done this to her, that I had used her. Even if she had used me as well, I still couldn't tell myself that this was for the better, because it wasn't. In truth, I felt _worse_ than I had before._

_I jump from the tower, and the air whips past me. For a moment, I lose myself in that feeling. It had always been something of a comfort to me, flying from the top of a building like a bird. Falling without thinking of what awaited me below. I spread my arms and imagine that I _am_ that bird, flying freely without a care in the world. But the haystack arrives to break my fall all too soon, and I linger only a moment, trying to retain that feeling but losing it like every other time I had done this._

_I climb out and walk off. I wonder for a second if she was watching me from up there, but the thought leaves as soon as it comes. It doesn't matter. Nothing matters anymore. This pain was growing. I could feel it. And I knew also that I wouldn't be able to take it much longer._

_Suddenly, an image of the Piece of Eden rose in my mind. I had hardly thought about it in the past few weeks since Malik had married. I was too caught up in my feelings for him. But it was there in my mind now, and I knew that I could not stop myself from giving in to it. The only thing that kept me from doing so right then was a sense of urgency to leave Acre, to leave the entire area of Jerusalem, Masyaf, and all the other cities behind._

_This was where the Templars were, where the Assassins were, and where Malik was. If nothing else, I needed to get the Apple away from them. I needed to hide it, and I remember now the map I had made just weeks ago, though it seemed like years. I would bring the Apple there, and I would do so now._

_I grabbed some supplies and a horse, and then I was off. I left nothing to hint at where I was going, or even that I had gone. The days rolled together until I could no longer distinguish between one and the next. I don't know how long it took me to get there, but once I arrived, I was at least of the right mind enough to set the horse free before I set myself down. As I took the Apple from its box, I was suddenly reminded that I had duties, an obligation to the Assassins back in Masyaf. But then again, with Malik there, they would do all right. I had done what I could. He could do the rest._

_The Piece of Eden shined as brightly as I had remembered it. Mist swirled inside it, and for a moment I just sat and watched it. It was so beautiful. I don't know when it happened, but suddenly I was falling. No, not falling! Flying! The mist was all around me, I could almost feel air brush past me, though how there could be air in there I do not know, nor do I care. It was just… so beautiful…._

* * *

It was a rather grotesque thing that Leonardo proudly displayed for him the morning that Rodrigo was to arrive. It was a dark brown leather suit that looked like it was to cover his whole body, including the head. Coming from the head piece were two long tubes that connected to an oddly shaped block of what looked to be cork. After staring at it a while, Ezio finally said, "I'm not wearing that."

Leonardo's smile wavered, then he looked at the other man disapprovingly. "Ezio, it may not be the most beautiful thing in the world, but it _will_ get the job done. I promise you."

Ezio looked dubious, but he kept his doubts to himself. "Couldn't you have made it a nicer color or something?"

"Pigskin leather only comes in so many colors, Ezio. And besides that, I didn't have much time to put it together, or else I would've added a bit more... I don't know, _flair_ to it." Leonardo sighed in regret of having to deal with an incomplete work of art.

Ezio grimaced as he looked the thing over again, but he understood that he didn't really have a choice in the matter. "You are sure it will fit me?" He didn't remember Leonardo taking measurements of him.

"Positive." There was no hesitation there. Ezio gave him a look, and Leonardo actually blushed. "I, ah, didn't need to measure you. After all the time I've devoted to watching people and drawing them, it wasn't difficult to remember what you looked like, and therefore what measurements the suit should have."

Ezio nodded, then turned back to regard the suit distastefully as Leonardo began describing how it worked. "I'm afraid that as long as there isn't someone giving you a new source of air, then you will not be able to dive very deep. I've made the tubes here shorter than what I had planned they should be. You won't need them to be any longer, however. If you go much deeper than what they allow, the pressure will be a problem for you."

That seemed simple enough. "What is this part?" Ezio pointed to the piece that was on the other end of the tube from the suit.

"This and the tubes are what allow you to breathe. This part floats above the water so that you can keep a clean supply of air coming in through the tubes. They will be your only source of air while you are under the water. Be sure you don't break them or anything like you did the first time you tested my flying machine. I may not be able to fix it in time for tomorrow."

Ezio glared at him. "I will be careful." He looked more closely at the strange block. "Isn't someone going to notice it if it stays above the water?"

Leonardo beamed at him. "I have taken that into account." He leaned down and pulled an old, rotted box out from under the table. "We will place this over it. The small holes in the sides should allow enough air to get in for you to breathe. There is enough refuse in the waters that one little box will hardly be noticed, so people won't be suspicious about it. Hopefully."

That was reassuring. Ezio sighed. "Let's hope it works." He gathered up the suit.

Leonardo looked alarmed. "Wait, we aren't testing it first?"

"No time. With the guards patrolling a larger area of the docks than I had thought, I will need to start farther away than I had first planned. It will take time to swim to where I want to be."

Leonardo looked uncertain, but Ezio was already on his way out the door. He sighed in resignation, hoping that Ezio would come back in one piece.

* * *

It was a rather small ship that Rodrigo came in. Viewing it from the bottom, Ezio had to wonder if it was the right one. But it was the right time, and there were no other incoming ships, so Ezio decided to take the chance and say it was Rodrigo's.

Ezio was still some ways off, so he began swimming closer, hoping the guise of the rotted box on top of the block would fool the sailors. As he got closer, he saw a smaller ship approach Rodrigo's. It seemed Leonardo's observations held true once again. They came alongside the larger ship, and Ezio waited for a few moments before swimming up to it and slowly rising. The glass in the helmet that he tried to look through when he surfaced were too blurry from the water for him to see anything, so he quickly took it off. He had estimated the timing right, for there was a small boat beside him, a rope ladder leading to it from the larger ship, and no one in sight. Perfect.

Ezio left the helmet (or whatever it was that Leonardo wanted to call it) in the water. Since it was connected to the tubes, it would only hold him back. He wore little beneath the rest of the suit, so he grimaced as he realized he would have to wear it or go naked. He hoped he could do this quickly before anyone saw his face too well. He'd never be able to live down the humiliation of being caught in such a horrible-looking outfit.

He easily leapt aboard the small boat, then quickly climbed the ladder. Before reaching the top, he stopped and peered cautiously over the rail. There were quite a few people on the deck, but he wasn't sure yet which was Rodrigo. He used his second sight and spotted his target on the other side of the deck. But there was something else there. A brightness emanated from one of Rodrigo's pouches, and Ezio knew then that it must be the Apple that the Assassins were after. Both targets in one area. Ezio wondered at his luck sometimes.

Without further ado, he leaped over the railing and ran towards his target. Yells and gasps of shock were heard around him, and he saw his target reach for the pouch. Ezio would have none of that. He barreled into the man, and they both fell over the other side of the ship into the water. Before the man could struggle, Ezio's hidden blade was in his throat. The water kept them from speaking, for which Ezio regretted. He wanted to ask the man so many questions, but instead he merely sheathed his blade, gave the man a small prayer, then fumbled for the strings to the pouch at his side. He pulled the Apple free.

It was beautiful. There was no other way to describe it. The light emanating from it had not been just his second sight. It was a light that came from the very depths of the object itself.

An arrow tore past him, and Ezio remembered the situation he was in. Knowing he wouldn't be able to swim far enough out of the Templar's sight before he had to come up for air, he decided to try for the rest of the suit that he had left by the small boat. If his luck continued to hold, no one would have noticed it yet.

Ezio put the Apple in a bag he had wrapped to his side over the suit, then pushed off the body to swim for the helmet.

Apparently his luck _did_ hold. When he rose from the water, no one was looking at this side of the ship, so he quickly slipped the helmet back on and dived under again. He took his time and swam out away from the ship. The soldiers had lost sight of him, so they combed the docks and the ships watching the water for any sign of him, knowing he would have to show himself eventually or risk drowning. Unfortunately for them, he didn't need to rise for air any time soon.

It took him nearly an hour, but finally he figured he was far enough away from the uproar by now. He swam to the edge of the city and peered above the water. No soldiers were there to greet him as Ezio had been expecting. The whole thing had been too easy, and as he had been escaping, he was sure that something was going to go wrong. But that did not seem the case. At least not yet.

He felt the Apple at his side twist and rock against him as he swam a bit farther down. His clothing was stashed away in a box not too far from where he was, and he very much wanted to change clothing now.

He reached the place he had marked, and the box containing his clothes was still there. He quickly rose from the water and changed into his white Assassin garb, feeling immediately at ease as he felt the familiar clothe brushing against his skin.

Suddenly he was aware again of the Apple. There was no reason for it, but his attention seemed to be almost drawn to it. Curious, Ezio reached into his bag for it. His hand grasped it and pulled it out easily. The water didn't seem to have affected it in any way. He turned the sphere around in his hands, inspecting it. There was something… _compelling_ about it. He looked a little closer, his eyes losing focus as his mind drifted….

* * *

**AN**: And being the evil little me that I am, I leave you with a cliffhanger.

Actually, I didn't really mean to, but that's just the way it happened. Sorry for making you wait to read what happens next. ^^;


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer**: The Assassin's Creed series and its characters belong to Ubisoft/Ubisoft Montreal.

**AN**: Sorry for the wait, and thank you all for your patience!

Just to let you know, I changed the genre of the fic to General/General, 'cause I honestly have no idea what genre it _should_ be anymore. Also, there's another warning that I need to mention. Violence and bloody mayhem will ensue in this chapter. And about two other times in later chapters, too.

As before, updates will be every other day. Also, this is the last chapter that has Altair's POV in italics at the beginning.

Lastly, I was having a few problems with FanFiction for this chapter. It doesn't seem to like it when I use the _tab _key in my documents. Anyway, the beginning that is in italics probably looks a little weird, but I did the best I could -_-.

* * *

_I…. I feel something._

_Something… different…._

_It isn't the Apple._

_-----can't be the Apple._

_What is this_

_-----__must touch it_

_-----__-----__so different, but so nice_

_-----__-----__-----__warm…_

_It pulls away from me_

_-----__I don't want to be alone_

_-----__-----__Wait for me!-_

_-----__-----__Please don't leave me here!_

* * *

Ezio could almost feel the Apple call to him. No, it _was_ calling to him. His mind drifted and he sank lower into its beauty. He stopped thinking of those who pursued him and of those who needed him. He lost himself in that sensation, and he could feel himself fall.

Suddenly, a new sensation came over him. Or rather, it _grabbed_ him. Surprised, Ezio pulled back from the Apple, but the thing kept tugging at him. He panicked and pulled back harder.

A flash of light knocked Ezio to the side, and he felt a weight on top of him. Looking up, he found a man in strange clothing sprawled out on top of him. The man blinked, then looked down at the Assassin. He seemed as surprised as Ezio did.

* * *

Altair blinked as his mind began to register his surroundings. An alley, the sound of a body of water nearby, the boy under him. He felt surprisingly calm, relaxed. More relaxed than a trained Assassin like him _should_ be. What had happened? Where was he, and who was this boy beneath him? Their eyes locked, both too surprised to say anything. The boy didn't seem to know what had happened either.

Then Altair saw it. The Apple of Eden that was held in the boy's hand, its light as radiant as he remembered it. Memories flooded back to him. He remembered his feelings for Malik, the unbearable pain of rejection and loss, and the convenient escape the Piece of Eden had provided for him. Altair stared at it in horror as realization of what he had done dawned on him. Somehow he had given in to the Apple, but what had happened after that? Had he merely hidden inside it like a coward, or had he unknowingly fallen to its power like his Master had? Had he tried to destroy everything he had once loved and treasured? He had to know, _needed_ to know. He reached for the Apple, but he at least knew better than to dive into it again. No, there was another place where he could dive to get his answers.

The boy.

As Altair's right hand closed around the Apple, his left shot out to seize the boy's forehead. Memories flew through his mind, but this time they were not his. Rather, they were the boy's. Altair shifted through the various conversations, but realized he could not understand the words. So he dived deeper, going back to when the boy was a babe just starting to learn to speak. And Altair learned. It only took moments to go through the boy's early life, and the Apple made it easier to open Altair's own mind for him to learn the language more easily. Then, he searched for his answers.

As he did this, the boy – Ezio was his name – bucked under Altair, his eyes rolling back into his head as his own forgotten memories assaulted him. A part of Altair felt guilty for violating Ezio's mind, but another part of him felt it was necessary. This world was new to him, strange. He needed to know how to survive in it while he tried to right what he had done wrong.

He saw many things that confused him. He saw pages of his Codex, but they were old and torn from their binding. He saw a group of men, all proclaiming to be Assassins, though they did not wear the customary white clothing. He saw a city decorated with rich colors, fragrant flowers, and beautifully designed structures.

But as it was with his Master, the more he learned, the more the horrible truth of his situation became clear to him. He was in the same world that he remembered, just sometime in the future. Or rather, _he_ was from the _past_. The Apple had somehow kept him safe all these years until this boy had pulled him out.

Altair lifted himself from Ezio's mind and let go of him and the Apple, no longer wanting to be anywhere near the relic. He felt numb. He brought his hands before his eyes and stared at them, uncomprehendingly. Had he truly run from his troubles? Did he truly desert Malik and the others of the Assassin's Order? What kind of... _monster_ was he to have left them when they needed him?

Suddenly, the world turned upside down as Altair felt Ezio throw him off. Too shocked to counter the move, Altair fell hard. Ezio swiftly pinned him to the ground, his hidden blade unsheathed and at Altair's throat. There was anger coupled with no small amount of confusion in the boy's eyes, but Altair was thankful to see no pain. Though he had tried to be gentle while diving, he had still worried that the Apple would've been too much for Ezio to handle.

Ezio glared down at him and scowled angrily, the hidden blade hovering not a finger's width from Altair's throat. Altair didn't move, didn't try to fight back or defend himself. This was the price for his information, and one he was willing to accept.

Instead of killing him, however, Ezio said, "Who are you?" His voice sounded as angry as he looked, but there was an undertone of curiosity there.

Altair hesitated. He had seen hints of his Codex in the boy's memories. Ezio would surely know his name. Was there any danger in telling him? Altair could not think of any at the moment. And besides, it was the boy's right to know. "My name is Altair Ibn La'Ahad." The Italian language was strange to him, and his tongue stumbled over even those simple words.

Ezio's eyes widened. "Altair? The one who wrote the Codex pages I've been hunting for?"

Before Altair could respond, a shout came from the end of the alley. "_Assassino_! The _assassino_ is here!"

Ezio's head snapped up, and Altair saw two men behind Ezio with swords drawn running towards them. It seemed their discussion would have to wait.

Ezio leapt off of him and scurried up the nearest building. With little else to do, Altair rose and swiftly followed his fellow Assassin to the rooftops of this strange city called Venezia.

* * *

What the _hell_ just happened?!

All Ezio could think about was that feeling. The rushing assault of old memories he never thought he could remember. What had that man done?! And was he truly Altair? _The_ Altair?!

Ezio could hear the Templars cursing behind him as they climbed up the side of the building. Unfortunately, this meant that he would have to find that man later if he wanted answers.

A flash of white in the corner of his eye and Ezio glanced over to see Altair following him closely, a small smirk on the man's lips. He was keeping up rather well for a man who looked twice Ezio's age. Obviously Ezio wasn't running fast enough.

He kicked up the speed, but still Altair followed. So Ezio tried harder. He scaled up the tallest buildings. He leapt across the largest gaps. He even ran through a brothel to try to throw the man off. Nothing seemed to work, although the two Templars had fallen far behind. In fact, the man seemed to be _enjoying_ the challenge.

Then again, so was Ezio.

They ran all across the city, neither willing to be the first to give in to the other. Ezio jumped down from the rooftops and into the streets, hoping that the small crowds of people would slow the other man down. He took sharp turns and threw barrels and crates behind him, but Altair would not let up.

Suddenly they ran straight into a group of Templars that had been scouring the city searching for them. There were nine of them, and they quickly surrounded the Assassins, blocking off their escape. Cursing, Ezio and Altair drew their swords in unison. There was nothing else to do now but fight.

Ezio wasted no time. He sprang on the closest Templar, driving his hidden blade into the man's throat. He had hoped that the Templars would be too surprised to attack the opening he had left in his side. It had always worked on the average soldier in the past. Unfortunately, the Templars proved to be a little more... elite. Ezio dodged the first swipe that tried to decapitate him, but a second was making its way to his side. One that he could not dodge.

Then Altair was there, parrying the strike aside and countering as the Templar's sword arm went wide, driving his blade up brutally through the man's torso. Altair viciously tore it back out, quickly returning to his defensive stance. Ezio had enough time to catch the calm and controlled way the man held himself before the two pressed their backs to each other.

The remaining Templars were hardly put off by the show of brutality. Ezio soon found himself swinging his sword about wildly in defense from the onslaught of several swords attempting to impale him at once. Ezio couldn't find an opening to exploit that would allow him to be able to come out relatively unharmed. Already he had a cut on his forehead dripping blood into his right eye, and a deep wound on his left shoulder. One Templar in particular seemed to enjoy taking 'baby strikes' (as Ezio sarcastically referred to them) at his legs, making several small cuts that, altogether, worked to spill a substantial amount of blood. And the _bastardo_ was even smiling.

A quick glance to his side showed that Altair faired better, but not by much. But then, Altair didn't have this irritating little fly trying to cut his legs to pieces with one tiny little slice at a time.

Suddenly, Altair changed his tactic. Where before he had been defending as Ezio had, now, quicker than Ezio thought possible, the man leaned into Ezio's space and thrust the tip of his blade into the throat of the annoying Templar that had been using the 'baby strikes.' The Templar choked as blood welled from his open mouth. His eyes widened in shock, and he fell to the ground with a dull thud, twitching as he died. Just as quickly, Altair was back and defending himself as if it had never happened.

Ezio decided that this change in tactics looked like fun, but he would be damned if he couldn't do better.

Ezio threw himself in front of Altair almost immediately after the man had returned to his previous stance, taking Altair's opponents by surprise as he lashed out with his sword. At the first swing, he had no direction for it. He just wanted to make the enemy back away a little, to give himself an opening. One appeared, and Ezio struck, slitting the throat of one of the Templars smoothly. Then he pressed himself on them, moving aggressively forward and swinging his sword with murderous intent. Another Templar stumbled as he tried to back away, presenting his stomach for Ezio's blade to jab through with ease. One last Templar remained, and Ezio returned to his defensive stance, knowing that his element of surprise was now gone. The Templar came at him, and soon Ezio found himself being pressed back. Ezio tried an offensive strike, but the man parried, twisting Ezio's sword about and somehow tearing it from the Assassin's grasp. Ezio decided that it was time to change his plan again (he had never enjoyed playing defense anyway). He dived at the Templar with his hidden blade, but the man seemed to expect that. He stopped the thrust with a hand, then kneed Ezio in the abdomen. When Ezio bent to clutch his stomach, the Templar swung him to the ground, his sword up high and ready to impale the Assassin....

* * *

Ezio's aggression surprised Altair as much as it had the Templars, but being the highly trained Assassin that he was, he didn't hesitate to take advantage of it. While Ezio's previous opponents stared for that one second in blank incomprehension at the suddenly empty spot where Ezio had been, Altair was suddenly there, taking advantage of their surprise to dispatch the closest man with a quick jab through the throat. Unfortunately, the last two were quick to recover, switching back to offense. Altair hunched down and ducked under the first man's sword, and he felt it cut through his side. Despite the pain, he went on to swipe the second man's sword aside while still moving forward. He ended up behind the second enemy, and before the Templar could turn Altair kicked his leg hard. A satisfying crack was heard as the leg bent oddly. The man screamed, but Altair was swift in stifling the noise, pulling back the man's head with his free hand and slitting the exposed neck.

In the time it took him to do this, the last Templar had turned to him and was about to swing his blade down on Altair's head. Knowing he didn't have time to jump out of the way, he instead dropped his sword and jumped _toward_ the man, barreling into him and sending them both crashing to the ground. He quickly tried to twist off before his opponent could throw him off, but something snagged. He nearly panicked before he saw his own hidden blade stuck deep into the man's chest, striking the heart. Altair blew out a sigh of relief. He still managed to surprise himself sometimes with how well in tune his reflexes were with his abilities as an assassin.

He pulled his blade out and looked for Ezio, finding the boy on the ground desperately trying to dodge the thrusts of a frustrated Templar. Altair casually pulled out a throwing knife and sent it flying into the man's back. As the man paused in surprise at the sudden assault from behind, Ezio rolled to his sword and in one swift move plunged its tip through the Templar's chest.

Without hesitation, Altair gathered up his own sword and they both took off, climbing again to the rooftops and making their way away from the crime scene and to a place where they could rest a moment.

Leaning against the wall of an overly decorative balcony, Altair felt pain as the excitement following the fight wore off. He reached his arm up to circle about his side, then pulled it away to see that blood covered his hand. He grimaced and hoped it wouldn't get infected before he could have it treated. In his experience, those who knew how to treat wounds did not handle infections very well. Perhaps medicine had improved in the time he had been away, but Altair did not want to take that chance.

Beside him, Ezio breathed hard, and Altair wondered at how often the boy exercised. If Ezio had been doing what Assassins in Masyaf were trained to do, something like this would hardly be a problem. Had Assassins grown careless since his time?

Ezio looked up at him when he could finally breathe. "That probably could have gone better." He grimaced as his wounds began to make themselves known.

Altair snorted. "Perhaps if you hadn't jumped on that first one, we would have had more time to put our backs to a wall rather than each other."

Ezio scowled at him. "I see that now, thank you."

Altair looked at him strangely. "You are an Assassin, are you not?"

"_Si_. Why do you ask?"

"Yet you have never been trained to fight Templar soldiers before?"

"Not those types, no. They are more… skilled than what I am used to."

Assassins had indeed grown careless, it seemed. Altair was not in the least impressed. Someday, he might even be able to convince himself that his being here rather than with Malik was for the best, although he doubted it. Either way, this Assassin needed help and proper training, and since Altair was here, then he felt obligated to give them to his fellow brother of the Creed. But still, Altair fervently hoped that no other Assassins were as young, ill trained and rash as this one.

Once he had caught his breath again, Ezio looked Altair over. "You are wounded." He rose and stretched his back a little, then let out a huff. "_Va bene_, follow me. I have a friend close by who can see to it." As he took a step towards the balcony railing, Ezio turned back to him, "By the way, this friend of mine doesn't know about us. About Assassins or Templars or anything. I would take it as a kindness if you kept it that way." There was an underlying threat there, and Altair would have laughed at it had he not wanted to provoke the boy. Ezio had no idea how quickly Altair could kill him. As it was, the older Assassin kept his thoughts to himself as he followed his limping brother.

And yet, even though Altair was sure he could kill Ezio if the need arose, he did not really want to. Even if Ezio was not a very good Assassin right now, Altair could see potential in him. And besides that, the boy had a personality that Altair felt he would miss if Ezio was no longer around to display it.

* * *

**Italian-English translations**:

_Assassino_ = Assassin

_bastardo_ = bastard

_Si_ = Yes

_Va bene_ = Very well


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer**: The Assassin's Creed series and its characters belong to Ubisoft/Ubisoft Montreal.

* * *

The man was beautiful. His features were perfectly proportioned, his exotically light hair and beard were trimmed neatly, and his eyes were a clear window to the obvious passion that whirled within him. Perhaps others would call Leonardo da Vinci handsome in the same manner as they would call Ezio that. But to Altair, he was a unique and natural beauty.

Leonardo smiled warmly at him as Ezio introduced them, and Altair felt his heart leap. He realized then that he had an odd attraction to the man, though he didn't think it was sexual. Instead, he found that he was captivated by the honest face and decorative attire. This attraction was odd in that he still hadn't gotten over losing Malik, and he certainly didn't expect to get over him anytime soon. Still, this Leonardo touched something in him, and he was surprised to find himself calming in another man's presence for the first time since he got here.

Before Ezio could say anything else, Leonardo rushed over to a cabinet and returned hurriedly with some glasses and wine, claiming that he would be a poor host should he not offer them something to drink. They both accepted, then Ezio asked if he would fix them up a little. The streets were too busy with the guards searching for them, he said, and they would never make it to a doctor. Leonardo was more than willing to help them, and, after being waved off by Ezio, he set to work on Altair first.

Altair stripped off most of his clothing except his pants, then watched quietly as Leonardo worked on his wounds. The man had quickly made up some sort of poultice which he then spread out on the wounds, claiming that it would take care of any infection. Altair was relieved to see that medicine had improved since his time. His fingers worked quickly with the bandages, and Altair admired how long and fine they were. Nothing like his own which were scarred and calloused beyond any hope of healing. The tips were somewhat blackened, though Altair had heard Leonardo washing them earlier. The artist must use charcoal a lot of the time, Altair thought, and perhaps ink and quill as well.

But what fascinated him even more was the complete control the artist had over his hands, which was somewhat unusual in the average person. It was the type of control that could only be found in someone who is a master of his craft. Altair himself was a good example, having complete control over his body and what he did with it, an ability engrained in him since early childhood which he perfected to become the master he was now.

Ezio, needless to say, was obviously lacking this mastery. But then Altair supposed there _was_ a kind of charm in not only the lack of control, but also in the way he used his uncontrolled actions to his own advantage. Ezio was rash, but Altair could tell he was not stupid. Usually.

As Leonardo moved on to treat Ezio, Altair noticed a flash of quickly suppressed emotion on the artist's face. He looked sad. Wistful even. Altair wondered what the reason for it was.

Leonardo told Ezio to strip down to his undergarments, and as Altair pulled on his own clothing, he was amused to see the blush that spread across the boy's face.

"Is that really necessary?"

Leonardo stared at him in surprise. "Ezio, you have several cuts on your legs and a deep wound in your shoulder, both of which are I can't get clear access to through your clothing. It would make this much easier for me if you would get your clothes out of the way." He looked at the Assassin strangely. "I am quite certain you have stripped in front of people before-"

"Leonardo!" Ezio protested.

Leonardo blinked. "Why the modesty?" He was genuinely puzzled.

Ezio's blush deepened. "That is for when I am having sex, Leonardo! It is completely different!"

Leonardo's brow wrinkled as he tried to understand. "So… you are modest now because there are no women here whom you wish to have sex with?"

For the first time in several years, Altair laughed. He laughed all the harder when he realized that Leonardo had been serious. Ezio glared at the older Assassin.

It was then Leonardo finally noticed the dark shade of red on Ezio's face. He blushed in turn. "Oh! Um, well, perhaps I could try treating you with my eyes closed, but that would require more… um… touching. Or maybe-"

"_Il diavolo_, just get it over with!" Ezio cut in before Leonardo could ramble on any further. He quickly drained his wine and began stripping off his shirt. Leonardo quickly turned away.

"S-so," he stuttered, "You are fine with me looking? A-at the wounds, I mean…."

"_Si_, Leonardo! Just do it quickly!"

Altair kept laughing.

* * *

The man that Ezio introduced Leonardo to was, for lack of a more definitive term, strange. There were many reasons – five in total – why Leonardo thought this, and these things proved to be a rather intriguing puzzle to him. Ezio, for his part, kept relatively silent about the whole thing, simply presenting the man as a friend and leaving it at that. As Leonardo worked to tend the two, he considered the mystery.

The first was, of course, the man's name. Altair Ibn La'Ahad was also the name of one who had written the Codex pages Ezio kept bringing him to decipher. It was also a very old name, and Leonardo wondered at how this man came to be known by it. Was he a descendent of the old Altair? Was the old Altair so influential on the man that he decided to take the name for himself as well? Perhaps there _was_ no correlation between the two, but Leonardo found that difficult to believe.

The second was the outfit. Perhaps in his own country the plain white garb would have been acceptable. But the likeness it had to Ezio's was clear to Leonardo. Ezio's was by far more extravagant, but they both still had similar basic structures, such as the hooked hood and the strange, triangular symbol engraved on the belt.

If it had only gone that far, Leonardo would probably not have taken this mystery so seriously. And yet there was still the issue of the hidden blade. Leonardo saw it in the folds of the man's sleeve the moment he walked through the door, but even if he did not already know what the contraption on the man's arm was, the missing finger would have been a telltale sign. This hinted at a certain connection to Ezio that went beyond just friendship. Perhaps they were in a group of some sort? Though Leonardo could not for the life of him figure out what it was about except that it had something to do with violence, for what else could they use those blades for?

The fourth thing that Leonardo noticed was the uncanny resemblance between Altair and Ezio. They had similar facial structures, the same expressive eyes, and they both even had a scar on the right side of their mouths, in the _exact_ same spot, stretching the _exact_ same length. Perhaps the scar could be considered a sort of symbol for them to show that they were in the same group, but with the rest of the similarities between them, Leonardo would have thought that they were brothers had he not already known the Auditore family.

Beyond that, there was also a certain amount of similarity in their personalities. Both were arrogant and prideful. But here is where the fifth and last item that Leonardo felt the need to contemplate came into being. There was a difference in their demeanor, though it hadn't been noticeable at first, and Leonardo found this to be the strangest – and most worrisome – part of the man of all. It was the way Altair seemed to emanate waves that resembled those of a cold-blooded killer, and it frightened Leonardo. What frightened him even more was the thought that Ezio might one day become like that too.

And yet these waves that Altair created fascinated Leonardo as much as they terrified him. How did a man like this come about? What had his life been like to provoke such a demeanor from him that would chill the spine of nearly anyone in his presence? And what were his reasons for coming here to Venezia? The artist had so many questions, and yet, as with the questions he had for Ezio, he resigned himself to keeping them silent. Ezio and Altair were both a part of something. Something much larger than Leonardo had imagined when Ezio had first shown up in his workshop with the hidden blade and first Codex page. But he respected Ezio, and since he wanted to respect Ezio's privacy, he felt he must also extend that respect to Altair.

The bandaging was finally done (he really needed to ask Ezio to pose for him some day. His body was absolutely perfect for modeling!), and Leonardo glanced over at the source of his current curiosity. Those calm, cold eyes held his own for a moment, and Leonardo trembled slightly. Suddenly, he felt a need to escape those eyes. He felt that they would haunt his memories for years to come, and it frightened him. Leonardo hurriedly rose and excused himself. He needed a moment to collect himself.

* * *

Ezio nodded to Leonardo as the artist hastily excused himself. With the medical treatment done, Ezio assumed the artist was off to wash himself of the blood covering his hands. Altair had a thoughtful expression on his face as he watched the door where Leonardo had left from. Surprisingly, Ezio found himself growing a little angry with the man. The way he watched Leonardo was unsettling, though Ezio did not quite know why. To grab the man's attention (and get past his own discomfort), he decided to start a conversation.

"I am going to bring the Apple to some friends of mine."

"Assassins?"

Ezio's eyes widened. "_Si_, Signore. Did you see that while you were digging through my memories?"

Now it was Altair's turn to be surprised. "You know what I did?"

Ezio grimaced. "It was fairly obvious from my end, Signore." He glanced over at the pouch at his belt which held the Apple. "I do not think I will ever again doubt that there is magic in the world."

Altair considered him a moment, then said, "To answer your previous question, yes, I saw that in your memories. But I only saw enough to get a general idea of what was going on now with the Assassins."

"And what general idea is that?" Ezio by no means tried to hide the snarl behind his words.

Altair ignored the tone. "I know that the Templars are causing trouble again, but I am unsure of the extent. I also saw that you were collecting pages of my Codex. One of the things we will need to discuss at some point is how the pages came to be scattered in the first place." Altair looked at him apologetically for the first time since they had met. "I tried to limit how much I viewed, instead focusing on learning the language and learning about the state that the world was in. Also," he added, though he sounded guarded now, "I had hoped to find out what had happened to me before you came and pulled me from the Apple."

For a moment, Ezio's curiosity won over his anger. "What _did_ happen?"

Altair's eyes narrowed, and Ezio realized that this seemed to be a touchy subject for the other Assassin. "Perhaps we should save such a discussion for a later time."

Ezio glared at him. That was not something he wanted to hear just then. But Altair was already continuing before he could protest.

"By the way, I will be keeping the Apple." Altair calmly sipped his wine, almost as if he _hadn't_ expected Ezio to argue about that.

Ezio rose from his chair in anger. "Over my dead body you will!"

Altair regarded him coolly, though Ezio could see that something had changed in the man. "That can be arranged." The wine glass was drained, but those eyes never left Ezio's.

The feeling in the room had suddenly gone cold. The two knew they were being more stubborn than they should have been, but they each had their own convictions to stand by, and they would be damned if the other got in their way. Ezio flexed his right hand slightly, testing how fast he could catch the latch of his hidden blade. His left hand slowly inched toward the bag where he kept his gas bombs. Altair hadn't moved, or at least not noticeably. And yet, Ezio could sense that the man wasn't going to go down easy. Ezio's muscles tensed a bit, and he braced himself to spring into action-

"I do apologize for my prolonged absence, Signori. I, ah, had some business to attend to." He stopped short and looked between them, then he looked troubled. Ezio prepared himself to give an explanation for the current situation and to tell Leonardo to leave, but then Leonardo said, "Ah! You've both run out of wine! What a poor host I have been to allow such a thing to happen in my home. _Mi dispiace_!" He hurried over to his wine cabinet again, returning swiftly with the bottle of wine. He smiled apologetically as he refilled Ezio's glass, then turned towards Altair.

Altair and Ezio both stared at him in horrified amusement, then Altair burst out laughing. Ezio still couldn't quite believe it himself. Did Leonardo really not notice the tension in the room? Of course the artist tended to miss a few things that were common sense to others, but was he really _that_ oblivious?

Leonardo just looked between the two with a confused smile and a lost expression on his face, not understanding the joke. Ezio knew then that yes, Leonardo _did_ just walk into an obviously dangerous situation without even realizing it. Ezio shook his head sadly, but also couldn't help but laugh with Altair though the two had been prepared to kill each other only moments before.

Altair finally controlled his laughter and, wiping tears from his eyes, said kindly, "Leonardo, we appreciate your hospitality, but Ezio and I need to talk for a moment, if that is all right with you?"

Leonardo smiled brightly. "Oh! Of course, Signori." He stood there a moment, then suddenly realized that Altair had been politely asking him to leave. "I-I'll be on my way then. _Mi dispiace_!" He took a couple steps forward before stopping abruptly again. He turned back to Altair uncertainly. "You are certain you do not want anymore wine, Signore?"

Altair's smile broadened and he chuckled before replying, "_Si_, Leonardo. I will be fine."

"_Va bene_." The artist took one last glace at Ezio, then left quickly. Suddenly his head popped back in. "And if you need anything-"

"We will call you." Altair's eyes had returned to Ezio, and they stared at each other warily. They both heard Leonardo's footsteps retreat up his stairs in the back, and both gave a small sigh of relief. It seemed that they at least shared the sentiment that neither wanted the artist involved in this.

Now that _that_ had been taken care of, Ezio wondered what Altair intended to do next. He eyed the man suspiciously. Did he want to fight now? But with a closer look, he realized Altair seemed calm now, almost relaxed. Still, Ezio remained on guard.

Altair's eyes softened. "Perhaps we should save this argument for later when we meet up with the other Assassins."

Ezio relaxed a little despite himself and nodded slowly. "That seems fair enough." Still keeping a wary eye on the man, he gathered up his things. "Let us be on our way then."

"Hold."

Ezio glared at him. "_Now_ what?"

Altair's lips twitched, but he kept any other expression from his face. "We shouldn't be going anywhere yet. The Templars are still searching the streets, and will continue to do so through the night. I suggest we stay here until tomorrow night."

Ezio hesitated. That seemed like a good idea. He would get some much needed rest, while also allowing his wounds a bit of time to heal. True, he wanted to get the Apple to Antonio as soon as possible, but it would do no one any good if he was caught by the Templars. He slowly found himself nodding, though he did so distastefully. Altair had a point, so Ezio would stay. But only for one day.

* * *

Leonardo was in his workshop painting something that he claimed was a long overdue commission from a patron in the city. Unknown to the artist, Altair stood in the doorway and watched him for a while as Ezio slept upstairs.

The painting was beautiful. There were no words to completely describe it, and Altair froze in fascination as Leonardo's brush swept across the canvas in confident strokes. The entire painting was so realistic, Altair was sure he had never before seen something so breathtaking. In Masyaf, they did not have many people with such artistic leanings. Aside from the occasional decorative etching in stone with some symbolic relevance, there was little there that would make people stop and look at it in awe. But then, the fort had not been built for beauty, but rather for defense and as an institute for learning the ways of the Creed. To happen upon such skill as this, and to see such beauty as this, Altair realized that he had not seen much that was truly beautiful in his lifetime. It had always been blood and death, political intrigue and traitorous deception. Of course, the Apple had been beautiful, but that beauty had been tainted by the understanding that he could lose himself in it completely.

But this painting was different. There was no horror within the smiling face of a mother caring for her child. There was no danger of falling into it, except in the metaphorical sense. It was simply there, overpowering in its perfection. Altair could fall in love with such beauty. A beauty that he could never have seen back home.

Altair wasn't sure how long he had stopped and stared at it before he remembered again the artist guiding the brush. He was suddenly reminded of that look Leonardo had given Ezio earlier. The sad and wistful one. Did the artist care more about the boy than he was letting on? Perhaps as a father cares for his son, or a man cares for his brother? Or perhaps it was something more? Altair wasn't sure, but he was curious. If it _was_ something more, then this would be the first time that Altair had knowingly met someone who was like _he_ was. A man who was a lover of other men.

He turned away quietly, never alerting Leonardo to his presence. It wouldn't do to get his hopes up so early after he had just met the two. But still, he wouldn't mind having someone around who could understand him….

* * *

**AN**: Hmm.... I can't help but feel that I'm missing something in this chapter.

And if anyone says, "You're missing a hot sex scene at the end where Altair totally gets it on with Leo, and Ezio wakes up from all the noise and conveniently decides to join in," then shame on you! (but know that I secretly love you ;P)

**Italian-English translations**:

_Il diavolo_ = What the hell

_Si_ = Yes

_Mi dispiace_ = I'm sorry

_Va bene_ = Very well


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer**: The Assassin's Creed series and its characters belong to Ubisoft/Ubisoft Montreal

**AN**: To fix a mistake in earlier chapters, Theodora's name is actually spelled Teodora, so that's how I'll be typing her name from now on.

Also, I've been trying out a few new Italian words (they're fresh from an online translator! =D), so if anyone here knows Italian, I hope I don't make you cringe _too_ much.

* * *

"Are you sure this is the place?"

"_Si_, this was where Leonardo said Antonio was." Ezio crossed his arms in front of his chest as he stared at the building. There was laughter coming from inside, the loudest of which were women. Ezio had the feeling that he already knew what sort of business was being run beyond those doors, which would account for why Leonardo had blushed when trying to direct them to it. However, a certain name made him pause. "I have to say, I am very curious to find out who this _Sister_ Teodora is."

Altair was looking at the door with suspicion. During the walk there, he had been taking in the sites now that he had the time and convenience, and Ezio noticed his eyes linger on more than one scantily clad prostitute. At first Ezio didn't think anything of it. It was natural for men to stare at them. But then he noticed that Altair seemed almost frightened of them, taking a wide circle around them and looking at them suspiciously, which nearly made Ezio laugh. Perhaps back where he was from, there weren't very many prostitutes. Ezio thought to himself that he would soon have to teach Altair a few things about the modern world.

As per his usual custom when entering a building, Ezio knocked a few times, then walked in. He was hit immediately by the waft of perfume and the dim but cheerful lighting. As he had guessed, there were prostitutes in here, two of whom were seated on a couch and laughing with a familiar face. Antonio looked up and spotted Ezio. Ezio almost felt bad for interrupting him.

"Ezio! So good to see you, _amico mio_. I take it you have some good news for us?"

Ezio smiled. "_Si_. I was able to get the Apple."

Antonio smiled in return. "Wonderful!" he turned towards the women hanging on his arms. "A celebration is in order, _le mie donne belle_!" One of them smiled brightly, and Ezio's eyes were caught by the perfectly straight set of white teeth. No wonder Antonio picked her. She was beautiful when she smiled like that. She rose and made her way over to a cabinet. Before she could return with the prize, however, another woman entered the room.

"Don't you think we have more important things to do right now than get drunk, Antonio?"

Antonio snorted. "Nonsense, Sister. I am already halfway there anyway. Why not finish it?"

The woman looked at him in disapproval. "It seems to be a common trait in most unrefined men to drown their misery in either wine or women, or in many cases, both."

Antonio coughed delicately behind a hand, but Ezio had already seen the light blush cross his cheeks. "Come now, Teodora. I have been busy enough. Is a moment of celebration too much to ask?"

"It is when you do it every night. My girls and I can only provide so much salvation to one who has given up on their faith, Antonio." She turned to her girls. "Put the wine back and head upstairs. I need to speak privately with our guests. Tell the other girls I want no interruptions."

Ezio and Antonio watched the girls exit with wistful expressions. But the Sister was right. They had business to discuss. Perhaps afterward, though….

Teodora nodded to the others. "Follow me, Signori. I have a place where we may discuss this." She took them into a back room before gesturing for them to make themselves comfortable. She turned to Ezio. "Welcome, Signore Auditore. My name is Sister Teodora, and this is my place of worship. I see you have brought an unexpected friend with you." Her perfectly painted eyes smoothly took in Altair, who had decided to stand in the corner, clearly uneasy in his surroundings.

Ezio answered her. "Uh, _si_, Sister. This is Altair, and his presence here is a long story. But before that, if you would excuse my forwardness, did you say that this was your place of _worship_?"

Teodora graced him with a small smile. "_Si_, Signore Auditore. In this place, we worship the comfort and pleasure of the soul _and_ of the body."

Antonio broke in here. "Teodora and her fellow _Sisters _have a very strange idea of how to worship God. Not that I am complaining or anything." He winked at her, but she ignored him.

"I see." Ezio found that he could get used to this type of worship. He took a quick glance at Altair to find the man looking a little sick. Altair was clearly not used to the _coltura Italiana_ just yet. Ezio's mouth twitched, but somehow he was able to keep the smirk off his face.

Teodora said, "So about this man that is with you. He seems foreign. Does he speak our language, or shall I send for an interpreter?"

Altair cleared his throat weakly. "I can speak your language." The others looked at him. Altair, much to Ezio's further amusement, blushed a little. Feeling pity for the man, Ezio decided to take over for him.

"He came from the Apple."

Teodora's eyes widened, and Antonio gave an exclamation of surprise before saying, "_Dio mio_, how did _that_ happen?!"

Ezio didn't know the answer to that, so he turned to Altair. Luckily the man was past his previous embarrassment and answered in a voice that shook a little less this time. "The Apple is able to hold a person inside it and keep both their body and soul safe, though I do not know how. For myself, I… fell into it. I don't know how long I was there, but I suddenly felt another presence – Ezio – and he somehow pulled me out."

Antonio looked thoughtful. "This Apple is more powerful than we thought. There must be some way we can use this ability against the Templars-"

"No! You must not use it." Ezio looked at the Arabian in surprise. Altair had changed a little and was now speaking with surprising confidence and power. "It changes those who use it, and even has the ability to influence those within close contact with it. You need only see it once for it to have a hold on you. If you try to use it, you may end up losing yourself to it in the same way that I did."

Antonio studied him with sharp, intelligent eyes. Though the thief had admitted to drinking somewhat heavily earlier, Ezio saw none of the alcohol's effects in him now. After a moment, he nodded slowly. "I see. _Va bene_, we will think about it." Suddenly he seemed to be struck by something. "Altair. That name is familiar."

Ezio answered him. "He is the one who wrote the Codex pages that we lost."

Antonio's eyes widened as he looked back over at Altair. "_You_ were the one who wrote them?"

Altair nodded. "Yes, with the help of a good friend," he said softly, as if remembering something from his past.

"But that was hundreds of years old! The Apple kept you alive all that time?"

Altair nodded again.

"_Dio mio, quello è stupefacente_!"

While Antonio tried to wrap his head around that, Teodora took over the conversation. "Since it seems like there is nothing else to be done about this without approval from the rest of the Order, I will send word for La Volpe. He should be somewhere in the city, or so I have heard. He will get the message out to the rest of the Assassins that we need to meet again." Teodora looked at Ezio and Altair. "It is rather late. Perhaps you would care to stay the night, Signori?" There was a hint behind her voice of certain… _additional_ pleasures than that of a good bed to sleep in. Ezio couldn't resist. Altair looked ready to bolt.

* * *

A knock on his door jolted Leonardo from his work. It sounded demanding, and Leonardo had the impression that whoever was behind it would not take kindly to being left waiting for very long.

He walked quickly up to the door and cracked it open a bit. A pair of soldiers wearing the Doge's colors stood on the other side. The taller of the two cleared his throat. "Messer da Vinci?"

Leonardo, knowing something was not quite right, straightened a bit and opened the door further. He put on his most friendly smile and steepled his fingers as he bowed slightly to them. "_Si_, Signori. How may I be of service?"

"Come with us. Signore Silvio Barbarigo, cousin of the Doge Marco Barbarigo and state inquisitor of Venezia, requests your presence in the Palazzo at once."

Moments later, Leonardo found himself being hustled out of his home and toward the Palazzo. Unknown to him and the guards, a shadow detached itself from the darkness of an alley next to the workshop and silently followed.

* * *

"Messer da Vinci, it has come to my attention that you are quite the engineer."

Leonardo fidgeted uncomfortably in a chair, a wine glass held tightly in a slightly trembling hand. The Doge's cousin had told him to sit, but had not taken the initiative of seating himself, instead pacing the chamber with an almost predatory calm. It was unsettling.

"Um, _grazie_, Signore. I do tend to try my hand at inventing from time to time, though I am not nearly so recognized for my ideas as much as I am for my art."

Barbarigo kept his gaze focused on the wine he swirled about in his glass. "A modest man, I see. Perhaps these… _rumors_ I've been hearing about are truly just that. Rumors."

Leonardo swallowed hard. The man was up to something, and Leonardo had a sinking feeling he wasn't going to like it. "What rumors might those be?" He asked.

Barbarigo turned around to begin pacing in the other direction. "Oh, you know. Small things, such as that people have been seeing a certain _assassino_ frequently entering your home in the past." He looked at Leonardo for the first time, an inquisitive look in his eyes. "Do you know why this could be so?" Leonardo opened his mouth to reply, but Barbarigo talked over him, continuing his pacing. "You see, Messer da Vinci, in my experience when dealing with the common people, rumors always spring from _some_ source. Now, perhaps it is that the people were mistaken, and that it was someone else with a remarkable resemblance to this… Ezio Auditore. Or perhaps someone is falsely spreading them in order to defile your name, for a talented man such as yourself is bound to procure envious enemies at some point in his life. But I would like to know what_ your _opinion is. So tell me, Messer da Vinci, exactly what am I to make of these rumors?"

Leonardo didn't really have an answer to that. He attempted a reply. "I, ah, I have no idea where they could be coming from-"

"The demon that the assassin was seen flying in was found very near the Palazzo. Were you aware that we took it in and examined it?" Leonardo nearly choked at the sudden change in topic. He kept silent, too afraid to speak. "It was a remarkable design; very… _creative_. There were even several markings to exemplify its beauty, which is very strange. Normally a weapon used for murder is not decorated to such an extent, so I have the impression that it was made by one who enjoys making things look _pretty_. One who, shall we say, might consider himself an _artist_." He was now looking at Leonardo intently. Leonardo could feel himself beginning to sweat. "Oh but that isn't all, Messer da Vinci."

"I-it isn't?" Leonardo's voice cracked, and he trembled slightly.

"No, Messer. There was also another demonic item that the _assassino_ used. One that was more… _recent_." Barbarigo's gaze lifted from the artist as he began to pace again. "We found it some ways away from where Rodrigo Borgia was assassinated, next to the waters. Its design was by no means artistic, but it was still quite an impressive thing. An outfit, to be more precise. One that the _assassino_ apparently used to swim under the water with. Now it seems rather silly for a man to wear such a horrid thing – especially a man as prideful as Ezio Auditore – unless there was something about it that made it special. Upon further inspection, we found that it would have been rather useful for helping a man remain under the water and still have a full supply of air. And if that wasn't enough," Barbarigo stopped and faced him again, "It was brought to my attention that some time ago, a man once brought such a design to the Veneziano council. In fact, it was the _exact_ design. Do you know who that man was, Messer da Vinci?"

Leonardo couldn't speak. He couldn't even move.

"You made the machine that the _Assassino_ used to get into the Palazzo, did you not?"

Leonardo opened his mouth to protest, to do _something_, but Barbarigo interrupted him again.

"And you made that detestable, but admittedly brilliant outfit that the _Assassino_ used to murder, in cold blood, a compatriot of mine, did you not." It was no longer a question. Leonardo had nothing he could say which could be used in his defense. There was just too much evidence against him. Signore Barbarigo knew it as well.

"Don't try to deny it, my dear Leonardo. You are known for you genius, your ideas and inventions, and your ability to portray all the beauty of the world on a small portrait." His voice steadily rose. "You and I both know that no one else in this city has the ability, the money for materials, _and_ the _drive_ to do such a thing as help out the _Assassino_ Ezio Auditore. For clearly you have the first two in hand, and with the _fact_," he spat the word out venomously, causing Leonardo to flinch back, "that Ezio Auditore was seen entering your home on more than one occasion leads me to believe that there was some sort of connection between the two of you, one that perhaps could have made you feel obligated to helping him. Am. I. Not. Right." This last was spoken in a clipped, almost angry tone, and Barbarigo turned to look at the artist with dangerously narrow eyes. Leonardo, who was never able to lie very well, could almost see the guilt on his own face.

Here, however, Barbarigo's face relaxed a little, becoming almost friendly. Leonardo wasn't buying it. "My dear Leonardo, I think you understand the situation you are in. Because no matter how modest or polite you pretend to be, you are still above the average intelligence in this God forsaken cesspool of a city." He spat the words out distastefully. As attempted to get control of himself, Leonardo could see him thinking. Or rather, _pretending_ to think. The man had planned this all out beforehand; Leonardo could tell at least that much. Silvio Barbarigo was good at these types of things, but that was to be expected in one of the state inquisitors. There was not much else the artist could do but see what the man had in store for him.

Barbarigo casually placed his drink on the small table next to Leonardo, then suddenly lunged at him, pinning the artist down to the chair with his greater weight. Leonardo jerked back, spilling his wine over his doublet. Barbarigo grabbed Leonardo's chin, forcing his face up to look into the cold eyes of the predator above him.

Then Barbarigo smiled in a friendly manner, but as before, Leonardo knew better than to trust that smile. "Perhaps, Messer da Vinci, before I decide to report you and thus have you hung for treason, we could instead come to some sort of agreement."

Leonardo knew he was caught. He glared back at the inquisitor and suddenly found an intense need to spit in the man's face. So he did. Barbarigo flinched back and scowled, quickly bringing up his other hand to wipe it off. Leonardo had the feeling that Ezio would be proud of him, though that revelation did not comfort him as much as he thought it would.

Leonardo winced as Barbarigo made to slap him, but the inquisitor held his hand, reconsidering. The two stared at each other, one fearful but still somewhat defiant, the other contemplating. After a moment of silence, the hand clenching Leonardo's chin relaxed a little, though Barbarigo didn't push away yet.

Barbarigo smiled at him, and Leonardo felt like he was being laughed at. "Let's pretend that you were _not_ being incredibly foolish just a moment ago, though if you do something like that again, I _will_ hurt you." The threat caused Leonardo to gulp, but the artist was somehow able to keep himself from trembling _too_ much. Barbarigo continued as if nothing had happened. "You are going to do what I say when I say it. If you don't, I will hand you over to the Doge's guards, and you will be hung on the spot. Do I make myself clear, little_ artista_?"

Leonardo swallowed hard again and sharply nodded once, his jaw clenched.

"Good." Suddenly, Barbarigo's eyes softened, though Leonardo had the impression that they were even more predatory than before. The thumb of the hand that was under his chin slid up to lightly trace the corner of Leonardo's mouth, then it began to follow the artist's jaw line back, brushing aside wayward strands of light brown hair. Barbarigo's eyes slid down to watch where his thumb went, almost like he was curious about why it strayed. The thumb continued all the way back to just below Leonardo's ear where it stopped for a moment, the fingers resting gently on Leonardo's neck, almost caressing. Leonardo froze. He didn't quite understand what was happening, but he knew that he didn't like it.

There was another long silence. Abruptly, the man lifted himself off of Leonardo, so quickly that the artist flinched again, but Barbarigo was already turning away.

"My men will take you to your room. We have already taken the liberty of moving your workshop here. In the morning, you will go over your inventions with my personal engineers. After that, we will decide which we like best, and you will oversee its construction. When I have time off from my busy schedule, I will personally come to oversee _you_. Do you understand, Messer da Vinci?"

Since he still wasn't looking at Leonardo, the artist stopped himself from simply nodding and instead stuttered out a yes.

Finally, Barbarigo glanced back at him, his eyes flitting up and down Leonardo as he thought of something. "You are useful to us now, little _artista_, so I hope that you will behave yourself. We wouldn't want anything… _bad_ to happen to you. Dismissed." He turned away, and Leonardo was led into a room below the Palazzo where he was left to wonder how in hell he was going to get himself out of this situation.

* * *

**AN**: Some slight Leo molest, but I told you it wouldn't be that bad ;P. It will get a little 'worse' (depending on your perspective) in later chapters, but still nothing too bad. I'm debating about whether or not I should warn my readers beforehand about when it will happen next. Is there anyone here who is uncomfortable or just not interested in reading a scene like that?

**Italian-English translations**:

_amico mio_ = my friend

_Si _= Yes

_le mie donne belle_ = my beautiful women

_Dio mio_ = My God

_coltura italiana _= Italian culture

_Va bene_ = Very well

_Dio mio, quello è stupefacente_ = My God, that is amazing

_grazie_ = thank you

_artista_ = artist


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer**: The Assassin's Creed series and its characters belong to Ubisoft/Ubisoft Montreal

**[EDIT]:** I decided to keep most of what I wrote, but I toned it down a bit. I was a little hyper when I wrote it last night ^^;. Also, I edited it a bit more.

Readers, remind me in the future to never update chapters prematurely _ever again_. lol.

Anyway, sorry for any confusions, and hopefully you all like this updated one better than the old Chapter 10.

**AN**: Sorry, I was a little late in updating this chapter. Editing it took longer than I thought it would. Either way, now would be a good time to remind my readers that if I ever don't post on time, I will probably put the reason why on my profile page, so just check there if you're curious. I will also try to include the time that I _will_ be updating next. About the only times that I won't do this is if I've completely lost internet connection, or am in the hospital, or something else along those lines.

I admit that I had _way_ too much fun with the beginning, and though every part of me is saying, "Take it out and just go on with the actual story!" I had to leave it in -_-. Besides, it's been a while since we've heard from La Volpe. I guess you could also say I was trying something a little different. I may decide to change it later, though. It might be a little too different from the usual tone of this fic. If that's the case, I'll probably delete this and post it again with a note saying what I changed.

Since I didn't take it out, prepare for a longer chapter than normal. And sorry if it seems like I rushed it a little. I wouldn't be surprised if there are a few mistakes. I didn't want this chapter to be _too_ late in posting.

Unfortunately for those that were waiting to find out what happens to Leo, he isn't in this chapter, so you'll have to wait 'till next chapter ;P

* * *

According to street gossip, the Palazzo had been at the center of some interesting activities for a while now, and La Volpe decided to take it upon himself to watch it carefully since he had returned to Venezia just a few days ago. The day after Rodrigo 'The Spaniard' Borgia was assassinated, his vigilance paid off. A pair of soldiers came carrying a strange object into the building. Curious, he committed the soldier's faces to memory, and when they left the building late in the evening, he followed them. They made their way to a tavern where they parted ways, one heading home, the other going into the tavern. Just what La Volpe wanted.

He took a breath before entering the building himself. He hated this part of his job. It required too much socializing, and La Volpe loathed socializing. But still, he had to admit that it was one of the best methods of getting the information he wanted. So he beat down his loathing and put on his best smile as he opened the door.

Soldiers, though most were loyal to their lords, were still fairly easy to get information from, and hence one of La Volpe's main sources. Of course, they didn't just burst out with their deepest, darkest secrets right away to some stranger they have never seen before. La Volpe had to get them drunk first. The thief stepped inside the tavern, smiling broadly and looking like he had a big secret of his own that he really wanted to share. He located his target quickly enough, but he didn't make his way over to him. Not yet. First, he needed to catch the man's attention.

After strutting over to the man behind the bar, La Volpe demanded a large tankard of the finest ale in the house. The man looked at him funny and demanded to know if La Volpe had the money to pay for his purchase, to which the thief simply shook his nice, hefty bag of florins in the man's face. With this, he not only gained the attention of his target, but also of nearly everyone else in the room. People liked money, and they loved seeing a lot of it. But showing his money had another purpose to it than just getting attention. It gave people the idea that he intended to _spend_ it, or at least a good portion of it. They also know that with that much money, there was no possible way La Volpe could spend it all on his own. He was going to need help from someone else in the tavern.

After that, he looked around, still smiling that big smile, then his eyes locked on those of his target's. The man was alone, which was all the better. La Volpe strutted his way over to the table, taking nice, big strides that would look ridiculous to most people. But then, that was the point. He wanted his target to think he was an easily manipulated fool. It made La Volpe's job easier when his targets underestimated him.

La Volpe came up to the soldier and asked if he would like a drink, or several, perhaps? The man, of course, could not refuse an invitation to free drinks, so he nodded and La Volpe seated himself.

From here, the thief would need to take it slowly. First, he needed to engage the man in conversation, which meant telling him that 'secret' La Volpe supposedly wanted to tell since the moment he walked into the tavern. It may be interesting to note that this was also a good method to spread a few false rumors should the need arise.

La Volpe had his lie planned out beforehand, of course. He told it using grand gestures and very detailed explanations. The longer he took in telling his 'secret,' the more the man would drink. When the man was drunk enough, La Volpe began turning the conversation over to him, and from there, over to a topic that might lead to the soldier revealing the information La Volpe wanted to know about, all the while filling and refilling the man's glass.

Eventually, La Volpe learned that the object was a suit that the assassin had worn when he killed Rodrigo Borgia with, and it was regarded as an important piece of evidence that might solve the mystery of how the assassin got away. They had found it not too far from the docks, and had taken it to the Palazzo for investigation.

Perhaps to some, such a small bit of information may not seem worth all the trouble it takes to get it. But La Volpe knew that sometimes, the smaller bits were the most important. In this case, it led him to realize quite a few things. First, he already knew that Leonardo was a respected artist and sometime inventor, and he knew that Ezio had been with Leonardo most of his time since returning to Venezia. From this, he could assume that Leonardo was the one who built the suit. Second, La Volpe realized that, of anyone else in this city, Leonardo was the _only_ one who could have created that suit. He had money, equipment, intelligence, and he had a reputation for making the strangest of things. Third, Silvio Barbarigo, as a state inquisitor and the Templar who was most likely put in charge of finding Assassins and those who helped them, probably already suspected that Leonardo had _some_ connection to Ezio. Fourth, from all of the above, La Volpe felt it was safe to assume that Silvio now knew for a fact that Leonardo was helping Ezio. Fifth, that although most of the things Leonardo had come up with over the years seemed more like fanciful musings rather than anything that could actually work, these past two inventions that should not have succeeded at all did, in fact, succeed. In other words, if these two worked, what if the rest of Leonardo's inventions actually worked? And if they did work, then they could be useful to the Templars. Sixth and finally, Leonardo was now someone who the Templars could not ignore, and their more likely course of action would be to take him into custody as soon as possible and somehow coerce him into inventing for them.

Silvio was not stupid. Even La Volpe could see that there was enough evidence leading back to the artist, and he admitted that he didn't have the large network of informants that Silvio had. The inquisitor knew about Leonardo now, and he was going to try for him. Probably tonight.

La Volpe quickly headed towards the workshop, but when he got there, he saw that the Doge's men were already hurrying the artist out of his home. La Volpe cursed and followed, though he already had an idea of where they were bringing him.

* * *

Getting into the building was a little difficult, but the ability to sneak into places such as the Doge's Palazzo was part of La Volpe's charm. Unfortunately, the room where Sivlio was meeting with Leonardo had only one door in or out guarded by two alert Templar soldiers. La Volpe tried to listen through the wall of an adjacent room, but no luck. He could have knocked out the guards, or somehow had them lured away, but La Volpe decided against that. Besides, he could already guess at what was being said anyway, so there was little point in trying to break in. Silvio was likely threatening him with hanging or worse on the charge of treasonous actions against the Doge. Would it work? La Volpe didn't know. He had never met Leonardo himself and only knew what others had told him about the artist. Either way, it wouldn't do to have the Templars get their greedy little hands on the artist's inventions. La Volpe was going to have to think of some way to get him out of there, but he would have to do it later when he could get help.

Thinking his investigation in the Palazzo done, he made to leave, but something else caught his attention. It seemed that a visitor had arrived late in the night, stealing silently into the Palazzo to meet personally with Marco Barbarigo.

At times like these, there was one good thing La Volpe could say about sneaking into heavily guarded places like the Palazzo. The people you spy on tended to trust the defenses around them so much that they didn't feel it necessary to hold their conversations in some remote area of the building where there was little chance of being overheard by someone that shouldn't be overhearing them. Granted, Silvio didn't have that trust in the surrounding defenses, but then, Silvio was an insecure, paranoid fuck who craved power but couldn't get himself noticed enough to get it no matter how hard he tried, so he has to stick with his petty little secrets and pretend like _they_ are the things that make him better than everyone else because there was nothing else that he has that everyone else didn't have already.

La Volpe obviously didn't like Silvio very much. Actually, he didn't like any of the Barbarigos, but Silvio was a special case. The others were just idiots. Silvio was a manipulative prick. There was only one manipulative prick that La Volpe ever liked, and that was La Volpe himself.

So although he hadn't been able to eavesdrop on Silvio's discussion with Leonardo, he made a point to conveniently place himself in a position to overhear what this stranger had to say, right outside an open window that carried the conversation rather well. Wasn't it nice of them to be so careless?

The stranger seemed to be some sort of messenger. He kept his hood up, and La Volpe could see nothing of his face except the mouth and chin. His lips drew back into a scowl as he looked distastefully over at Marco's personal bodyguard, Dante Moro.

"Are you sure he can be trusted?"

Marco glared at him. "Of course he can. I would not let him in here if I didn't trust him."

The man gave a short nod, though he still seemed to hold some doubts. He continued. "Our friend would like to suggest that you send some of your Veneziano soldiers to a building we believe to be inhabited by Assassins. It is called La Rosa Della Virtu, a brothel that has courtesans claiming to be doing the work of God by prostituting themselves to men. We think Ezio Auditore is hiding there, as well as Antonio, head of the thieves' guild and an Assassin. The brothel itself is full of women who are working for the Assassins. Our friend thinks we should not miss this chance to take them all out once and for all."

"So you think I should just charge in and kill them all? There needs to be a public reason behind doing so or the people will riot!"

"That won't be much of a problem. The entire brothel is held in contempt by most of the public anyway for their strange religious views. You could say that they were all holding cult worshippings in their basement, killing women and children or some such thing. The people would accept that."

Marco scowled, but La Volpe could already tell he was going to agree. The thief had heard enough. They knew about Teodora and her brothel, and there was no way they would miss this chance to take her and the others out. La Volpe did not know where this 'friend' got his information from, but he would have to worry about that later. First, he needed to warn his fellow Assassins.

* * *

Ezio paced the floor of Altair's room, frustrated at how the older man was acting. "I want you to know that I think you are an idiot."

Altair turned another page of the book he had found on a shelf in his room. It was about the only thing now that was helping him relax while he tried to get through the shock of being thrown into this strange culture. "I will keep that in mind, novice," he said distractedly.

Ezio decided to ignore that. "The woman clearly likes you, why not make her happy?" A courtesan had come by Altair's room asking if he would like her to join him in bed, and for some reason Ezio could not possibly understand, Altair had turned her down.

Altair continued reading. "I am not interested."

"_Dio mio_, Altair, it is her _religion_ to please men like us! It is how she worships, and if you do not take her up on her offer, then you are not letting her worship. She _needs_ you! Where is your sense of _compassion_?"

Altair finally looked up with a strange expression. "You have a very twisted sense of logic, novice."

"I do not like to hear that coming from _you, coglione_. I am certain that it is illogical to not provide a woman with companionship if she wants it. And don't call me novice!"

"You mean it is im_moral_, not illogical. They are two different things. I would appreciate it if you didn't mix them, _novice_."

A knock came on their door before Ezio could argue further. Teodora's voice came from the other side. "La Volpe is here. He says he needs to speak with us, and that it is urgent."

Ezio and Altair glared venomously at each other, but they knew their argument would have to wait.

Once everyone was gathered, La Volpe wasted no more time. "Soldiers are coming, and will be here in minutes. They intend to kill all of us."

Teodora stood shocked. "In minutes? But that is not enough time for my girls to get away, La Volpe. Are you sure that is all the time we have?"

"_Si_, Teodora. They were about to start out before I left. You must get your girls out now."

Teodora looked troubled, but she went off and hurried her girls out through a secret door in one of the back rooms. Just as the last one left, loud banging came at the front of the brothel, and the wooden door shook on its frame. The soldiers were trying to break in.

Teodora turned to Ezio and the others with a hint of desperation on her features. "Please, Signori. Give my girls time to run. Stop the Templars from finding this passage too soon!"

Ezio found himself nodding even before she had finished. He liked these girls and their strange philosophies. He didn't want anything to happen to them. Altair also decided to stay. He couldn't just leave these women to defend themselves.

"You also have my assistance, Sister Teodora," Antonio said. "Anything for you and your beautiful Sisters." He winked at her, and she gave him a small, weak smile in return, too worried about her girls to do much more.

Ezio looked over at La Volpe only to find him already gone. Before he could mention the thief's absence, the door caved in and the soldiers swarmed inside.

After the first couple stormed in, everything became chaos for Ezio. He was not used to fighting indoors, surrounded by other allies who were so close to him. He felt cramped, but he made the best of his situation as he could. His first opponent came at him, and Ezio dispatched him easily enough, but then two others charged for him. A strike came for his head, but he dodged in time to catch the opening it had left behind in his opponent. The man fell back clutching a badly wounded arm, but hardly a second passed before another soldier took his place. Soon enough, he found himself hard pressed to keep their blades from cutting off anything important.

Sometimes, he would be granted a slight reprieve from fighting. He used these moments to catch his breath and glance over at his friends to see how well they faired.

Altair, of course, was doing just fine. Deceptively calm, he waited for the enemy to strike, then used their force against them to create an opening. Then he dispatched them with a cold, brutal strike of his own. The occasional crack was heard as Altair broke yet another man's leg or arm, and soon afterward, a scream of agony would be cut off sharply. Ezio admired the man's skill, but didn't think he would enjoy such a brutal style of fighting for himself. It didn't have enough _flair_, Ezio thought sarcastically.

A bit farther off stood Antonio. He wasn't nearly as good as Altair, and he was sweating already, but he still held his own well enough. Ezio noticed a few cuts here and there, but nothing too bad yet.

But what was more miraculous was the fourth person who had joined their ranks. Teodora was holding her own as well as Ezio was. Perhaps even better, he admitted to himself. She used a thin, light-weight rapier, though Ezio did not see where she got it from. Rather than parrying strikes, she would evade them, her body moving fluidly, twisting away from thrusts and ducking under swipes. It was the most graceful and deadly dance Ezio had ever seen a woman perform. Ezio realized that she knew the men she fought were stronger than her physically, so she refrained from facing their strikes directly. Instead, she would use their momentum against them, and often she would be granted an opening to take advantage of. At those times, her rapier would suddenly dart forward, piercing the soldier's throat or heart with exact precision.

It was even more remarkable considering she still wore her dress and nun's habit. Ezio liked her more than he thought he would.

Yet, as much as he wanted to continue watching her, he had to return to his own opponents. They still came in through the door despite how many the Assassins had killed already, and Ezio found that he wouldn't be able to keep this up much longer. He didn't know how much time had passed before Teodora finally called out, "That should be enough. Let's go!"

They retreated to a back room, Teodora first, then Antonio. Altair nodded his head to Ezio, motioning for him to leave next. Ezio glared at him, but did as the man said, ducking through the door just as Teodora got a window open. She leapt out, Antonio following quickly. Ezio came next, and just in time to find that the street behind the brothel had been blocked off by more soldiers. He sighed as he readied himself for more fighting.

Suddenly, a small object flew from the roof of the building across from the brothel, striking the ground in front of the closest of the soldiers and filling the street with gas. Smoke bomb, but from who? Ezio glanced up just in time to see La Volpe toss another at the group of soldiers blocking the other side of the street. La Volpe waved for them to follow him, and they ran to climb the building. Ezio, Altair, and Antonio reached the top quickly enough, but unfortunately for Teodora, her dress made climbing fairly difficult. Some of the soldiers made it through the smoke and began climbing after her. Ezio threw a few daggers at the closest ones, and Altair joined him. When she was close enough, Antonio reached out a hand to help Teodora up. They ran off quickly over the rooftops of Venezia, and La Volpe lead them toward Antonio's hideout. They would take shelter with the thieves now that it was the last place for them to be safe in the city. Hopefully the Templars had not found out where the thieves were as they had the courtesans.

* * *

**Italian-English translations**:

_bastardo_ = bastard

Veneziano = Venetian

La Rosa Della Virtu = The Rose of Virtue

_Dio mio_ = My God

_coglione_ = jerk

_Si_ = Yes


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer**: The Assassin's Creed series and its characters belong to Ubisoft/Ubisoft Montreal

**AN**: Last chapter, folks! Thank you to all those who have read and reviewed!

Also, just a heads up: this chapter is also a little longer than usual.

**Sequel Information**: The sequel will be another fic that will continue on with yet another plot and will continue the relationship between Altair, Ezio, and Leonardo. For those of you who want to know how far I've gotten with the sequel, you can check out its status on my profile page. I should be updating the page every so often.

* * *

The sun was just barely peaking over the horizon as Ezio and the others finally made it to Antonio's hideout. Much to his pleasure, Ezio saw that the courtesans from Teodora's were there as well.

"I led them here since it seemed not all of them had a place to go. Hopefully Antonio does not mind too much." By his tone, La Volpe doubted that Antonio would find a problem with this development.

Sure enough, Antonio gave him a wide grin. "On the contrary, I would be more than happy to house them. I am sure my thieves will not complain either."

La Volpe turned to Ezio. "You have the Apple?"

Ezio nodded, taking it out for them to see. As Antonio gawked at it, Teodora said, "La Volpe, now that we have the Apple, perhaps you could send out word that we want another gathering soon?"

La Volpe nodded, but looked troubled. "There _is_ another problem which I would like to discuss with you before we talk about that." Once he had everyone's attention, he continued. "It seems that because of a certain _invention_ that had been carelessly left lying by the docks," He looked accusingly at Ezio, who had the decency to wince and blush. "The Templars have found out about Leonardo's involvement with Ezio."

Ezio's eyes widened, and Altair's eyes narrowed. They did not like where this was going. Altair spoke first. "Where is he now? Did you get him away in time?"

La Volpe shook his head. "He is alive, of course. They have him locked up in the Palazzo and are probably trying to convince him to invent for them."

Ezio's eyes blazed with rage. "Are they torturing him?!"

"No, I do not think they would try that yet. Likely they are trying to frighten him into doing what they want, or are trying to blackmail him. He is too important right now for them to try torturing him without trying something less damaging first."

But Ezio was not listening. Not anymore. The Templars had Leonardo, and it was all his fault. But more than that, _the Templars had Leonardo! _He needed to get him out of there _now!_

He shared a glance with Altair, and they both knew that neither would stand for this. Without a word, they left the hideout quickly, and La Volpe called after them. "Wait a minute, Ezio! You need a plan first!"

"No! I will not wait for them to hurt him! I will get him out of there, and if I see that _anyone_ has so much as _touched_ him, they will die a horrible and painful death."

Altair grunted lowly in agreement.

La Volpe realized it was useless to try and stop them from carrying out this foolish mission, so he switched tactics. "At least wait until nightfall, Ezio! There is no way you can sneak in-"

"Then I will fight my way in!"

"And risk endangering Leonardo's life?" Ezio paused, as did Altair. La Volpe jumped on the chance to make them rethink their plan. "They will know that he is the reason for why you are there. They will use that against you, take him hostage. Are you willing to risk having them hold a blade to his neck in order to stop you?"

Ezio cursed and Altair tensed. La Volpe had a point. Ezio said, "And you think it will be any safer for him if we go at night?"

"I will get you inside," La Volpe said. "The Palazzo is not so busy at night, and there is more chance that we can get to him without alerting the guards."

Ezio nodded grudgingly.

* * *

Ezio and Altair stared hard at the entrance to the Palazzo. Ezio sighed, giving up. "…So. How are we supposed to get in?"

La Volpe glared at him. "Just leave it to me," he said sharply. He did not like being dragged into this, but he knew that he could not in good conscience let the two get themselves killed because of their foolishness. He took out an object from one of the pouches at his belt. Ezio blinked at it.

"La Volpe, is that a cup?"

"_Si_, Ezio. It is a cup. Do you have a problem with that?"

"Aside from the obvious, Signore?"

La Volpe grinned at him, then grew serious. "It is not just a cup, Ezio. It is a Piece of Eden. The same as the Apple which I am sure you foolishly decided to bring along with you despite knowing we were walking straight into the Templars' arms."

Ezio blushed and gave a small cough. Altair looked at the cup with interest. "You mean it contains knowledge and can control men's minds?"

"No, the Cup is different. It is said that when you pour the blood of a special type of individual into it and drink from it, you will gain immortality. You may still be killed, but you will never die from old age. However, as it is now, it only has the power to slow or speed up time. It works in a fairly small sphere, but it should be big enough to encompass all of us should we stay close."

"So what is the plan?"

"I slow down time, and we walk in through the front door."

Ezio snorted. "It is that easy? No wonder you are considered the best thief in the world."

La Volpe scowled at him. "I do not use it all the time. I could easily get into the Palazzo without it, but since I have you two to worry about, it is now necessary to use it." He calmed a bit and looked at the Cup guardedly. "It is dangerous. I do not like to use it, even though it would make things much easier for me. I almost feel like I will lose myself to its power should I become too used to it. For this reason, I will not use it unless I feel it is necessary."

Altair regarded him with new respect. After all his time with the Apple, Altair knew the feeling. "Do the others of the Creed know you have it?"

"The Creed?" La Volpe grinned. "That is an old term. But yes, they do. It is the reason for why I am the messenger for the Assassins. I use it for when I need to pass along messages or information quickly to others." He looked over at the Palazzo. "But enough talking, we should be about this."

La Volpe activated the Piece of Eden. Ezio felt nothing, but he saw a faint, shimmering wall appear in front of him. "Just one other question, La Volpe. Why could we not do this sooner in the day?"

"Because the Palazzo is busy then. Should anyone pass within the sphere from outside, then they will join me in this slowing of time. It would be rather embarrassing to walk into a group of patrolling soldiers frozen in time and suddenly have them come to life when I am right in front of them."

Ezio chuckled, and the group made its way to the door. The sphere was big enough to encompass it, but not the two guards on either side of it. La Volpe stepped forward and quickly picked the lock. They stepped inside, shutting the door behind them. The soldiers saw and heard nothing.

* * *

They were in a makeshift workshop below the Palazzo that looked similar to Leonardo's. As the inquisitor had said, the Doge's men had moved all of Leonardo's stuff here. It was almost like being home as long as Leonardo ignored the armed guards, the cold-faced engineers, and the sense of imprisonment.

Leonardo had spent the day attempting to tell the engineers he was forced to work with as little as possible about his inventions. Luckily, the artist's designs were difficult for anyone to read but himself, and though Leonardo had almost perfect trust in his inventions working should he get them made, he knew also that the engineers around him did not have such trust. They scoffed and looked at him like he was a fool trying to create the impossible. So Leonardo made sure that as he described his inventions to them, he left out little details that no one would notice, but was important enough that the invention would not work without those details. If it turned out that the inventions didn't work, well, that was just what the engineers expected anyway, so why would they try to find out what went wrong? Leonardo knew that he would no longer be of much use to Silvio then, but at least they wouldn't be using these things against Ezio. That by far was more important to him than his own life.

Later in the day – Leonardo guessed it to be sometime in the late evening, though there was no window – Silvio managed to come by and see how things were progressing. The engineers spoke with him about a few of Leonardo's war machine designs, and the artist could see him nod. After a few hours of that and asking Leonardo a few questions himself, the inquisitor told the others to leave, including the guards. Leonardo wondered at why he would want the guards to leave too, but then realized that Silvio didn't exactly have anything to fear from Leonardo. It was not as though the artist could fight him and have any chance of winning, after all.

Silvio picked up the papers that the engineers had picked out for him and shuffled through them. They depicted various siege weapons and other machines which could be used for warfare that Leonardo had designed when he was younger. Leonardo waited patiently for him to finish. He didn't have to wait long.

"You know, little _artista_, these inventions of yours are rather amazing. I find it difficult to believe that someone who is a self-proclaimed pacifist as yourself could in good conscious create such terrifying weapons."

Leonardo grimaced. It didn't surprise him that the inquisitor knew that about him. Still, he kept silent. Silvio did not seem to be expecting an answer anyway.

Silvio put the papers down and looked up to regard Leonardo. "Messer da Vinci, you are a mystery to me. I can clearly see that you are thinking of escaping," He raised a hand as Leonardo attempted to stutter out a denial, "And I will tell you honestly that it is not possible. I can also see that you have been lying to us about your inventions." Leonardo paled. Had he been that obvious? Silvio chuckled at him. "You are not a very good liar, little _artista_."

Silvio considered the artist for a moment, then he stepped forward and reached out a hand to grasp Leonardo's chin, lifting the artist's head to look closely into his eyes. "You have the eyes of an innocent." His voice softened, almost as though he was speaking to himself. "Like a child's eyes just as he is beginning to see the beauty of the world, but before he has seen its horror. And yet, a fully grown man such as yourself _has_ seen those horrors. Your war machine designs tell me as much. How is it possible that even through the horrors of this world, and through participating in them yourself, you still have eyes like that?" Uncomfortable, Leonardo tried to back away, but Silvio's other arm suddenly reached out, catching Leonardo around the waist. Silvio pulled him in forcefully. The inquisitor's eyes turned cold and he smiled cruelly. "I am also interested, little _artista_, in witnessing how long they will stay like that while you are under my care." The hand on Leonardo's chin wrapped around to bring the artist's head close enough for Silvio to plant a harsh kiss on his lips.

Leonardo gasped in shock and tried to struggle, but Silvio just pulled their bodies closer. Leonardo continued to struggle, but he knew that Silvio was stronger than him. He was trapped there. He gave a mental curse. How could he have not seen this coming? Why couldn't he have stopped it? _Il Diavolo_, how the hell was he going to get _out_ of it?!

* * *

There were two soldiers guarding the entrance to the place where La Volpe had claimed Leonardo would most likely be. Ezio and Altair each took up a position in front of the men.

"Are you both ready?" La Volpe asked.

They nodded and Ezio said, "Do it, Signore."

The sphere around them disappeared. Ezio and Altair sprang out, swiftly sinking their hidden blades into the throats of the two guards. They grabbed the bodies and noiselessly lowered them to the ground. Altair bent to search his victim for the key to the door, but La Volpe was already ahead of him, picking the lock with skilled ease. In moments, they heard a soft click as the lock slid open. La Volpe backed away and Ezio took his place, quietly opening the door to peer inside.

Before Altair could see what was in there himself, Ezio suddenly opened the door and ran in, crying out, "Get away from him, _bastardo_!"

The action surprised Altair, but as he moved into the room behind Ezio, he saw what had caused the boy to react so carelessly. A man was forcefully kissing the artist. Leonardo fought him, but he was not strong enough.

When the man heard Ezio cry out, he turned in surprise. Before the man could move further, however, Ezio was on him, driving his hidden blade deep into the man's chest. Altair watched for a moment in stunned fascination. He hadn't expected Ezio to become so angry. The boy had completely lost his mind, not even caring that the man had died after the first strike had hit his heart. Ezio just continued to cut into him over and over again brutally.

Leonardo's pale face caught Altair's attention, and the Assassin had to feel bad for the artist. He probably wasn't used to seeing such violence. Taking pity on the man, Altair went up to him and took Leonardo into his arms, blocking the artist's view of the horrible scene. Leonardo sank into his shoulder, shaking uncontrollably and wincing each time he heard the blade carve a new hole into the dead flesh.

Finally, the sound stopped. All that could be heard now was Ezio's labored breathing as his rage calmed. Hesitantly, Leonardo pushed away from Altair to look over worriedly at his friend, his eyes pointedly averting themselves from the body at Ezio's feet.

Almost as if realizing what he had just subjected Leonardo to, Ezio suddenly looked up at the artist and their eyes met. Altair could see the feelings churn inside the boy. He could see the horror as Ezio realized that Leonardo had seen that terrible side of him. A side that Ezio had never wanted Leonardo to be witness to. And the boy felt vulnerable against Leonardo's scrutiny of him. What would the artist think? Would he hate Ezio? Would he run from him? Fear him? Ezio didn't think he could stand it should Leonardo leave him. He turned away. He couldn't meet those eyes anymore, couldn't bear to see the horror and fear that would come to them.

He tried to choke out an apology. "Leonardo, I-"

"Ezio!" Arms circles around Ezio, and the Assassin was suddenly pulled into a tight, familiar hug. "Thank you for coming for me, _amico mio_! I do not know what I would have done if you hadn't."

Ezio was stunned. Leonardo embraced him even though the Assassin was still covered in fresh blood, his hidden blade still unsheathed. "Leonardo, you… don't hate me? For what I have done, or what I am?"

Leonardo looked up at him in surprise. "Hate you? Ezio, I could never hate you!" His eyes looked so sincere that Ezio knew he told the truth. The Assassin smiled and relaxed, relieved.

La Volpe cleared his throat delicately to grab their attention. "Excuse me, Signori, but we seem to have a problem. It seems someone heard Ezio's shout from before and have decided to investigate." The others heard the sound of footsteps coming from the hallway. La Volpe glared at Ezio. "You seem to be making a habit of getting us all into trouble, boy."

Ezio smiled and glanced over at Altair. "Well, I guess we _will_ have to fight our way through them after all." Altair snorted, but he was smiling as well.

La Volpe sighed. It was all right when fellow Assassins decided to become suicidal, but he hated it when they had to drag him into it too. The Assassins pulled the two corpses in the hallway into the room, then shut and locked the door. There was no other exit, so it seemed that they were all going to have to fight their way out of this one. Ezio motioned for Leonardo to get in the back somewhere while Altair and La Volpe went about shoving the heaviest things they could find in front of the door.

The soldiers began banging on the door, demanding entry. Ezio, Altair, and La Volpe stood back and waited. There was nothing else they could do. As the soldiers began trying to break through the door, Ezio suddenly smelled something strange. Was something burning?

Ezio turned to see that Leonardo had started a contained fire in the back of the room and was throwing his scrolls and other materials into it. "Leonardo, what are you doing?!"

"I am burning everything, Ezio. I realize now that everything I have here is something that can be used against us. We cannot take them with us, and I cannot leave them. Therefore, they must be destroyed. And besides that, you could use the smoke to your advantage." He ran up to them. "Take these wet cloths and wrap them around your nose and mouth. That should dim the effects of the smoke for a short time, hopefully long enough for us to get out of here."

"But your inventions!"

"I will figure them all out again in due time. I designed them once, I can do so again. But for now, they are too dangerous. Do not argue with me on this, Ezio."

The door rattled on its hinges. The soldiers were about to break through, and they didn't have any more time to argue the matter. They took the wet cloths and wrapped them about their heads quickly. Suddenly, the door broke and the soldiers quickly began climbing over the things Altair and La Volpe had put in front of it. The first man to reach them stopped short and choked on the smoke. Ezio easily took care of him. The next few were stopped in similar fashion, but the remaining soldiers knew to hold their breath before coming in.

Within moments, smoke covered the whole room, making it too difficult to see anything. Ezio coughed and his eyes watered. He had lost track of where the door was and where the fire was. He felt a hand on his arm, but before he could run his sword through the man, a voice coughed out, "Come on, novice. We need to run now." Altair.

Ezio nodded and followed the older man past the bodies of several soldiers and to the exit. In the hallway, he glanced back and saw Leonardo and La Volpe following them. La Volpe clutched a wound at his side and was leaning on Leonardo for support, but he somehow kept up with them.

They ran to the end of the hall and climbed the stairs. On the ground floor, they found no soldiers waiting for them, to their surprise. Suddenly, La Volpe gasped and collapsed to the ground. Altair ran back and he and Leonardo inspected the wound.

"It is deep," the artist said in a rush. "Looks close to the spine. Possibly fatal, I cannot tell. We will need to carry him, but gently."

Altair quickly picked the thief up as La Volpe coughed out, "This is the last time I follow you two _bastardi_. Oh, how I hate you both right now. _So_ much."

"Quiet." Altair said, and the group was off again, running for the exit. La Volpe lost consciousness not long after that. With the thief no longer able to use the Cup, the guards posted outside the Palazzo were going to be a problem for them….

They burst out into the night and found to their surprise that they had not been the only ones causing trouble at the Doge's Palazzo. Several masked men were engaging the Doge's soldiers in combat all across the courtyard. The three of them stood there and watched, stunned. Who were these people?

Altair was the first to react. He used the distraction to run through the shadows and away from the battle. Ezio and Leonardo followed closely.

Suddenly a large shadow interposed itself in the older Assassin's path. With La Volpe in his arms, Altair could not fight. Instead, he jumped back and allowed Ezio to get in front. The boy did, but before Ezio could do anything, the shadow gave a hearty laugh.

"_Nipote_! It is good to see you well. Have we come in time?"

Ezio blinked. "Uncle Mario?"

"_Si, nipote_. Antonio told us that you were getting yourself in over your head, so we decided to come over and help out a bit. My boys are giving the guards a nice distraction, don't you think?"

Ezio laughed in relief. "_Si_, uncle. They are at that. But aren't you a little early to Venezia?"

Mario looked slightly embarrassed. "You noticed. _Si_, I am early. This old fool should have sent out mercenaries long before when a certain fox had first tried to talk me into it. I made a mistake, but I hope now that I have made up for it in part."

Mario glanced behind Ezio, finally noticing Altair and the limp form in the man's arms. His eyes widened and he stepped past Ezio to take in La Volpe's condition.

"What happened to him?" He asked softly.

"We got into a fight below the Palazzo. I did not see it happen, but he was wounded there."

Mario shook his head sadly. "Give him here. I will take him somewhere safe."

Altair handed La Volpe over, and Mario cradled the unconscious man almost delicately, his jaw set hard as he looked the thief over once more. Then he turned to the battlefield. "Mercenaries! We're done here. Retreat!" The reaction was almost immediate. The mercenaries melted away from the fight, throwing smoke bombs on the ground to cover their retreat.

Mario went with them, and Altair, Ezio, and Leonardo went their own way, heading back to Antonio's now that it was the last place where they might still be safe in this city.

* * *

**AN**: Although I don't want to say anything about La Volpe just yet, I _can_ tell you that Altair, Ezio, and Leonardo make it safely to Antonio's. I'm trying to not leave you with _too_ much of a cliffhanger. ;P

Also, just to let you all know, all that stuff about the Cup is not, as far as I know, canon. I made all of it up.

Anyway, see you in the sequel!

**Italian-English translations**:

_Si_ = yes

_artista_ = artist

_Il Diavolo_ = The Devil

_bastardo_ = bastard

_amico mio_ = my friend

_bastardi _= bastards

_Nipote_ = nephew


End file.
